There’s no doubt the World Race is a life-changing experience for Racers, but it’s often a huge learning experience for parents, too. It’s an exercise in trust, as they fully place their children in the hands of God for their 11-month journey. Kasy Fackler, mother of Amanda Kay, a 2nd Generation D Squad Racer and a 3rd Generation D Squad Leader, shares a bit about the Race from a parents’ perspective.
To Parents of World Racers:
I will never forget the moment I knew my daughter would move through her life touching the lives of others, teaching others, impacting and changing lives — all for the glory of and in service to God.
It was the near end of the service on Christmas Eve. The choir, each member holding a lit candle, sang Silent Night.
Amanda Kay, just weeks past her second birthday, stood beside me on the pew so she could get a better view. She watched in amazement, taking it all in.
When I saw the look on her sweet face, I knew. I just knew that she would be called to service.
In that moment, I also knew it would be up to me to nurture, to teach, and be an example to this small person, so when she got the call that would inevitably come, she would be ready.
I understood at that moment this child was just on loan to her daddy and me. I knew just as she was chosen for a special purpose to honor God, so were her father and I. We were chosen to be her parents. We don’t know why he chose us, but we took the responsibility seriously.
After leaving the church that Christmas Eve, I wondered how I would prepare her. How would I know what she needed to learn?
I knew God wouldn’t have honored me with the task if I wasn’t capable, nor would He have trusted me with this little miracle unless he had prepared me for the task. But I didn’t feel prepared. I had work to do, so I began to study.
I studied parenting and discipling, anti-bullying and how to help kids learn. I went to classes and workshops, conferences and presentations. But was it enough for teaching Amanda? It had to be, because I didn’t know any other way.
Did I think about preparing her every day? No. Did I obsess about it? Not really. But it was always in the back of my mind. I never forgot the task assigned to me.
Sometimes it made things difficult for Amanda — she didn’t know what God and I were up to.
When Amanda was 16, her dad and I started to attend a church closer to our home, but she wasn’t interested in going with us. We were pretty relentless and one day she came along.
God knows how to entice teenagers, and the youth group had a field trip planned. I’m not sure what happened during that trip, but Amanda came home a changed girl. She had a new light in her heart and in her eyes, and I knew she was on her way.
We were not surprised when Amanda told us she wanted to attend a small Christian college to study ministry or when, after graduation, she started working at a church in a small town.
We thought we had done our job and she would spend her days using her gifts to impact teenagers, but her dad and I didn’t know what God and Amanda were up to.
We were surprised one night when she called out of the blue.
“I love the kids in the youth group, my church, and my church family, but I have to go bigger,” she said.
“How big?” I asked, but I already knew the answer.
She was a college graduate. She had a job and a house. She wasn’t asking permission. She was informing us of her decision. She was asking for our support, which she always knew was hers.
“Around the world.”
I don’t recall if I answered right away. I think I wanted to savor those last few worry-free moments.
As she spoke about the World Race, I could tell she was excited about the idea, but could she really give up the comforts of life in the US? An only child for the first six years of her life, and her only sibling a boy, she always had her own bedroom. She didn’t need to share her clothes, her car, her food. How would she be able to share cramped spaces and snacks?
The ‘what-ifs’ came fast and furious. Clearly she had given her decision a great deal of thought. Once the impact of her words sunk in, I knew, the way I knew when she was just two years old, that she was in better hands than mine.
Because we are her parents and had just paid for her college education, we wondered how much would this cost and where would the money come from?
“Fundraisers, mom.”
The daunting task of coming up with the money was almost as scary as knowing she was traveling to some dangerous countries where she would be exposed to disease and dangerous situations.
The answer to all my fears was always the same: this is what she was born to do, this is what she was raised to do. If it is meant to be, the money will appear.
How lucky her dad and I were to play such a part in something so big. If we couldn’t go ourselves, we could help Amanda along the way.
Is it the life we had chosen for her? No. It is the life chosen for her by the One who knows the role of each one of us. It is the life she was born for, the life she was raised for.
We are so very proud.
