This is the third and final post as to why I am choosing to serve on the World Race. For part one, click here. For part two, click here.
This past July, I served on a week-long mission trip to New York City with a team from my church. One of the main focuses of the trip was public evangelism. The second focus of the trip was prayer. Every night that we were in NY, we spent hours in prayer. A few of us also found ourselves spending our free time praying as the week progressed. In all honesty, I could have come home after the first night a changed person simply because of the time spent in prayer.
During one night session, I wrote in my journal as I prayed. The day had been amazing; I needed to process it and have some one-on-one time with Jesus. Jesus had been speaking one verse to me again and again during that week. He reminded me of it as I shared my heart with Him. Jeremiah 32:27 says, “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” I couldn’t help but ask, “Jesus, what do I still think in my heart and my mind is too hard for you to do?” He didn’t respond right away, but I knew an answer would come.
As our prayers and songs continued, immense joy filled the room and everyone one in it. Many of us were celebrating the love of Jesus, whether it was through dancing, waving ribbons and flags, shouting, or any combination of the above. Everything about the atmosphere in those moments reminded me of the worship night that ended with me saying, “I’m going on the World Race! I’m going on the World Race!” Having garnered my attention, Jesus began to whisper to my heart. He explained that it wasn’t a coincidence how both times I had been praying about the World Race as I danced around. His gentleness was evident as He spoke. “Remember this moment? It was so important that I am letting you experience it again.”
The atmosphere of joy soon shifted to a holy awe of the beauty of Christ’s holiness. It was in these still, quiet moments when Jesus responded to my question from earlier in the evening. I still saw certain obstacles in my mind about the World Race as things that were too hard for God to overcome. I found myself lying on the ground, overwhelmed by Jesus, crying as I prayed. I surrendered these mentalities and obstacles to Jesus.In the light of His love, a surrendered heart laid bare before Him is all I can offer. Surrendering those things were not just religious duties or activities in those moments. It was a time of simply fully trusting Him as my EVERLASTING Heavenly Father, my Abba, my Daddy, the One who never fails, never lets go, never forgets about my heart, never overlooks a detail, never stops being faithful; the One who calls me to step out on the water, the One who gives me faith and trust without borders.
Even in this week of deep, life-changing revelations and encounters with Jesus, I still didn’t think that the World Race would be so soon in my life. I remember one conversation I had with a teammate. I was frustrated because I wanted to be obedient to Jesus and His call to serve and love the nations of the world. I wanted to go soon, but there was no way possible for that to happen. I was complaining because while it all seemed to be coming together, it also seemed to still be something just out of my grasp.
Upon returning home from NYC, I looked into the World Race again, but with a new mindset. I was torn between applying right away and continuing to wait. I did not want to run ahead of the perfect timing of my Heavenly Father. Many prayers ensued, along with some well-timed conversations with friends. When the routes for July 2015 came out and I saw route two–a collection of countries that my heart already has many deep connections to–I knew it was time to take a huge step of faith and simply go for it, confident that nothing is too hard for Jesus to accomplish. Words that I had written in my journal during prayer in NYC became both the cry and declaration of my heart: “World Race, 11 months of this? YES PLEASE!”
The day my contact called me to share that I had been accepted, I still did not think that I was about to become an official World Racer. Apparently, I am a bit slow on the uptake at times. Thankfully, Jesus has immense patience for me. It has taken many years to be able to say this, but I finally am a World Racer! Thank You, Jesus for this amazing opportunity to share Your heart with the world.
