Racing Towards My Calling

Why am I doing this? How did I hear about it? How do I feel about the race? These are the questions I’ll answer in this blog! I’ll try my hardest to put in words how I feel about this race and share my honest feelings. These past couple months have been a roller coaster of emotions…

WHAT IS THE WORLD RACE?

Before I answer those questions let me tell you a little about what the World Race Gap Year actually is. It takes college-aged students on a 9-month journey to 3 continents. Like it says on the website, it’s Mathew 10 in action: “Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons, freely you have received; freely give.” I will be going to Thailand, Swaziland, and Nicaragua, and spending 3 months in each country. I CANNOT wait to see what God has in store and can’t wait for the opportunity to spread his word and love. This is what my hands have found to do.

HOW DID I HEAR ABOUT IT?

It all started last year at the end of junior year. It was around that time when people would start bombarding you with What college are you going to? What are you doing after high school? Oh, you don’t know yet? Well, you should figure it out!

I had no idea at this point on where I was going after high school, I had some ideas but nothing was certain yet. But the important part was I finally realized God has always had a plan for me and all I had to do was trust him. I have always had a hard time trusting him, or in anyone in that case, and this was the first time I fully trusted him. As predicted, it took a while for me to get a clear understanding of where he wanted me, but just a couple months went by before it became clear as day.

It was College & Career Day at my school, and students had to sign up for sessions they wanted to attend. If you know me at all, then you know I totally forgot to sign up for the classes. Since I forgot, I was randomly placed in the classes that didn’t fill up– covering industries from engineering to plumbing. With all the variety, the one that interested me the most was a session called “The World Race Gap Year.” Prior to this session, I never even knew this existed– and definitely didn’t know three kids from my school had gone on it! So the class was the three students that went, and they explained what it was, and told stories of their journeys. I obviously thought their stories were interesting, but it was never something I considered doing myself!

WHY AM I DOING IT?

A couple more months went by, and The World Race was still in the back of mind. I never really put serious thought to it until my parents asked what my plans I had for after high school. I was honest with them, and I’m not sure why, but I brought up the idea of The World Race. They were ecstatic to hear I was considering this option, but I was still unsure.

Over spring break that year, I went on a school missions trip to Pearland, TX to fix houses damaged by Hurricane Harvey. Before I left for the trip, I made a private decision to not go on the race. If I’m being honest with you, the decision was made in fear. I embraced fear and let it take over. I was afraid of the unknown, I was afraid of change, I was afraid of missing important events at home, but most of all, I was afraid of how the race would change me. I let all these fears control my decision, put my faith in myself and not in God, and I ended saying no to what he could have for me.

While on the mission’s trip, I was working on the roof with my dad for about four hours till we took a water break. I ended up sitting in the empty living room drinking my Gatorade, wondering what I had to do next on the roof. I was about to head back up when Bryan, a Texas local volunteer working on the house with us came in (Keep in mind we didn’t know each other prior to this). We ended up talking for half an hour about everything from construction tools to God. After our conversation, Bryan asked if he could pray for me. Obviously, I said YES! After he prayed for me, this conversation happened:

Bryan: “Hey, I have a question for you.”

Me: “Yeah, what’s up?”

Bryan: “This might sound weird, but are you dealing with a hard life decision right now?”

Me: “Uhhhhh, yeah….why?”

Bryan: “This is going to sound crazy but, during our prayer just now, God told me to tell you the answer is YES and GO”.

The rest of that week I was in complete shock and awe, but I knew what I was supposed to do. This was the confirmation that I was looking for, my green light to move forward in confidence, and the amount of relief after that encounter is indescribable. After I got home from the trip, I announced to my parents that this was my decision and why I was confident God was calling me to this race.

HOW IM FEELING NOW?

I’ve been writing this blog for a while now (distracted by other things), but this is the question that makes me think the most. Of course, I am beyond excited for this amazing opportunity and can’t’ wait to spread his love, but if I’m being honest I am also scared for what’s up ahead. I know with time and prayer I will overcome this fear because I KNOW this is what I’m supposed to do.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, I promise I will post more frequently! If you want to stay caught up then please subscribe 🙂 I am so incredibly thankful for your love and support as I start this amazing journey!