Reality is setting in that my days on the race are counting down and no longer counting up. We are in the middle of month 8 and I can’t figure out where all the time has gone. I have set foot in 10 different countries, laid my head to rest in 37 different places, taken 13 forms of transportation, learned basic communication in 5 languages other than English, and mastered the art of bucket showers and squatty potties. I have learned that an African dala-dala (a 12 passenger van) maxes out at 29 people on a daily basis. I have milked a Masai cow and have eaten rat, goat, and chicken feet. I have found myself in a small Kenyan earthquake and a Thai typhoon where my only form of shelter was found in the midst of the Red Shirt Protests. I have victoriously defended myself against VERY LARGE spiders, centipedes, scorpions, rats, mice, and roaches! I have even met a Maori chief, learned the Haka, spent time in aboriginal communities, lived in a rural Thai village, and stayed with a Masai Tribe. In fact, I learned to shoot a bow and arrow from two of their warriors, Kios and Nytaia, whose scars confirmed their stories of killing a lion. But I have also seen the rampant effects that alcoholism has on entire communities of people. I have seen children who joyfully play mostly naked because their families can’t afford clothes. I have been sickened at how selling young girls for sex is “just the way it is.” I have seen the fear of those who want to profess their faith but can’t due to threat of torture and persecution. I have seen those the world turns a blind eye to, the forgotten, the broken, the unwanted, those who we often throw away in our thoughts as a waste. I have heard their stories, learned their names. And even though all of the things above are valuable and important none is more important than this: I have seen God shower His LOVE on all of the “least of these.” I have experienced a God who never counts his children as unwanted or a waste because he desires us all. He doesn’t just desire the least of these either. He desires YOU and I have learned this year that He desires ME. Not just parts of my heart or life, but all of me to the core of who I am.
You see, upon reflecting on the last 8 months I have realized that the Race is just as much about me as the people we have come to serve. I know that may sound a tad bit selfish, but the truth is the race is an awakening in the depths of your soul. An awakening that shakes you to your core, out of the deep slumber you have been in all your life. You wake up wide-eyed seeing God, yourself, the world, and all of life for that matter in a whole different way. I have learned to walk in the freedom and authority God has given me. That because of the spirit of the living God living within me, I have the power to bring his Kingdom where ever I go, to shine light and bring hope to the darkest places. I have been sweetly broken, throwing off everything that hinders, all my junk that God never intended to be there in the first place, and fixed my eyes on the one who is LOVE. God is love, He is in me, and therefore I am LOVE to others. I know who I am and whose I am; my faith is a reflection of confidently walking in that. For maybe the first time in my life I am unapologetically content with exactly who God created me to be and I hope to bring that freedom to others. I am living knowing that my words can bring life or death to those who listen; I choose life. Even more than that, the power of the spoken word can change an atmosphere because the prayers of the righteous are powerful and effective. Did you hear that? YOUR prayers are powerful and effective. I have seen it, experienced it, felt it time and time again. God hears me and answers my prayer. HE STILL SPEAKS, STILL MOVES, STILL IS ACTIVLY PURSUING YOUR HEART. He is the God of miracles and NOTHING is too big for Him. The race has awakened me to His voice, tuned me into His guidance and leading. I trust that more and more, even when it seems odd because let’s face it, that is when He usually works the most. I have seen that God’s word is active TODAY, moving and breathing all over this world. WE are all called to be agents of change, bringing love in a way that seems foreign because we are called to His standard and no one else’s. A radical love that gets us outside of our comfort zones and selfish desires for the good of others, no strings attached, especially not “religious” ones. I am learning that I can’t do this alone. There is a reason why we are called the Body of Christ; we need each part to function in a healthy way. When one part of the body suffers we all do. I no longer believe that Jesus idea of church was to attend on Sunday and go to a bible study or two. He called us to live our lives as the church. That type of life and calling cannot be contained within four walls, it is everyday moment by moment actions that draw people into relationship with the creator. It is not contained in judgment or forcing your ideas upon others, it is displaying his love time and time again so that others can’t help but know you have something different, something they want. They see the light shining so brightly out of you that they can help but draw near to God because of you. It’s being so close to Him that your life is an overflow of His grace, love, mercy, forgiveness, peace, and joy. God is not about rules and confinement; He is about FREEDOM, LOVE, and being FULLY ALIVE in Him.
I was asleep, unable to wake up from the ordinary. I was asleep, unable to even dream of the life I could be living. I was asleep, completely unaware of the state I was in. I was blinded to the abundant life God had planned for me if I would just wake up, get out of bed, and move into action. If you think you might be asleep, YOU ARE. If that offends you, I don’t care because I would hate for you to miss the glorious fulfillment He has planned for you. You can miss it and you will. And if you are waking up start moving. Being fully alive requires you to put your faith, your life, and your heart into action. YOU ARE IMPORTANT AND HAVE A PURPOSE FOR YOU LIFE THAT IS WAY BIGGER THAN YOU!
For me it has been the race, this process of rubbing the sleep off my eyes and awakening to an extraordinary and abundant life. The beauty is I get three more months on this glorious journey and the rest of my life to live it out. Wherever God is calling you into action in your life, do it, don’t hesitate. To be alive we have to wake up, to truly live we have to get out of our beds and put our love into action. So I will ask you this, ARE YOU AWAKE?
“Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you” Eph 4:14
