Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve dreamed of traveling overseas as a missionary.
I first found out about the World Race at some point in my collegiate career. Since almost four years have passed since I graduated college, I can safely say that the World Race has been on my radar for quite awhile now. During my sophomore year of college, I participated in my second missionary trip, traveling overseas for the first time. I worked alongside of a group of friends (from a Christian group on campus) on a small, impoverished island in the Bahamas. Our week of ministry–quite the opposite of a typical college spring break–led me to experience Jesus in a way that I never had before.
Quite simply, Jesus wrecked my heart and it hasn’t been the same since.
Upon returning home and throughout the rest of my undergrad experience, I was always praying and seeking out opportunities to serve Jesus overseas (as well as in situations around me). My parents told me that I couldn’t live overseas permanently until I finished college. However, they never said that I couldn’t look into opportunities while I was waiting. 
I had a handful of missionary organizations that I had looked into and contacted. At this point, I had heard of the World Race and looked into it, but wanted to serve somewhere for longer than a year.
As time progressed, the other organizations proved to not be a great fit for the stage of life that I was in. I found myself following the blogs of different World Racers again and again, month after month, year after year. I started to reach out and contact different people as questions formed in my heart about the World Race. Even though my heart was already involved and dreaming of going on the World Race, I’m not the kind of person who makes decisions in haste. I needed answers to my questions before I even would consider going on the World Race as a realistic option. Once I got the answers my heart sought after (from both God and other World Racers), I knew that the World Race would be something I would participate in, at some point in my life.
When the 2013 routes came out, I had it in my heart that it was time for me to become a World Racer. I was full of enthusiasm and started my application. I never finished my application because God showed me VERY clearly, in multiple circumstances, that it wasn’t my time to go. I trusted Him, but kept praying about going on the World Race. A lot. And then a little bit more. I still figured that it would be awhile in the future before I was able to serve God in this particular ministry. I would always wave off the idea of participating in the near future when it was brought up in conversation. I figured that since God had told me, “No, not yet” every time I had asked Him in prayer before, I wouldn’t be going on the World Race for a few more years.
And then things started to get crazy.
(Stay tuned for part 2!)
