Ha! That’s the million dollar question! While the ultimate goal is to bring individuals to personal relationships with Christ, there are a few things that I am believing God for as a result of this experience. My prayer is that the Father will wreck, rain, and reign in my life, that He will reveal Himself to me like never before. I want to develop a boldness and confidence in sharing His Word, and to learn to be more gracious in the midst of truth. I believe my divine purpose is to help restore families to the original institution that God created them to be. Participation in the World Race definitely lends itself to that.
The World Race staff has its own expectations of racers and they are as follows:
- Ready for God to show up.
- Ready to live in authentic community.
- Ready to change.
- Ready to expose and deal with the past.
- Ready to have a positive attitude.
In the interview process they asked, “How will you embrace the process of growth and change that is required for this trip? What part(s) will be easy for you? What part(s) will be difficult?” In the spirit of transparency, my answer was as follows.
“Simply put, I will embrace the process with an open heart and mind, a spirit that is ready to receive and be challenged, and remind myself daily that God is in control and He has called me to this for a purpose. Prayer, faith, obedience, and healthy relationships with my squad members will be crucial.
Given the expectations of racers listed on the site, I think that the easy parts will be being ready for God to show up, to live in authentic community, being positive, and ready for change. The hardest part for me will be exposing and dealing with the past. That will be hard for me because I’m used to being the one people talk to rather than the one that shares. Thankfully, God has been working with me on this over the last couple years, and completing these interview questions has helped as well. However, I’m looking forward to it because the theme of the last 4.5 years of my life has been restoration, wholeness, and holiness. God has been restoring my relationships with my heavenly Father and my earthly father and I’m feeling more complete in Him. No longer do I find my worth predominantly in the opinions of others. I believe that in order for me to walk in holiness I have to acknowledge and really deal with my past because the enemy is going to try to use it to make me question my salvation and the purpose that God has set me apart for.”
So, here I stand, head bowed and hands raised in total surrender to Him as I allow myself to be vulnerable, to expose and deal with my past. I am reminded of the Apostle Paul’s words of encouragement, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)
