I have been home from the World Race for about 6 months and in this time I have been able to reflect on this past year and half journey the Lord set in motion for me. I first heard of Adventures in Missions in 2017 when I felt the Lord calling me to go on the World Race. This started me on a new test of my faith and realizing that the only way that I was going to be able to raise $18,100 was to set aside my need for control and to see what it is like to fully rely on him even before I left America. And so began a year of preparing, fundraising, and setting aside my pride in order to experience a level of trusting and faith that I had never had before. And through the Lord’s genuine kindness and faithfulness I was able to be fully funded by the time I left on this crazy Journey in August 2018.
From August 2018 to June 2019 my heart was broken and mended more times than I can count by the experiences and encounters the Father was kind enough to show me. This year has changed everything I have ever thought about the heart of the Father, the identity of the Holy Spirit, and my role in the Kingdom of heaven and bringing it here. God was kind enough to show me just how relentless his pursuit is over each and every one of our hearts, and how he won’t stop until he has found every lost sheep and brought them home. That is the simplicity of the Gospel, and for the first time I my life my eyes are finally open to it.
This year on the World Race I feel like I has awakened a part of my soul that has been asleep my whole life. There is a fire in my heart and a desire to fall in love with the Father over and over every day for the rest of my life. I don’t want there to be a day that goes by where he is not the first and the last thing on my mind. After feeling so consumed with purpose while on the Race I don’t think I was prepared for how challenging coming back home would be. Transitioning from a life of having to surrender daily my control and walk though faith into the unknown, to “normal” day to day life here in America, has proven to be one of the hardest seasons I have walked through. It’s revealed to me that I don’t have the tools or understanding of how to bring everything that I have learned on the Race to life back here in the States. I don’t know how to bring that sense of confidence in the unknown and kingdom building to a place that is surrounded by comfort and familiarity. And while I have learned so much about the nature and character of the Father, and my identity in him, I know this is just the beginning of something bigger. What is my identity in the Kingdom? And how can I practically walk that out in the day to day life of such certainty? And how can I take all that I have learned on the Race and practically apply them in life at home? And so in order to answer these questions I have decided to attend CGA or Center for Global Action program. CGA is a leadership and discipleship program that will allow me to dig deeper into understanding the Identity of the Father, my Identity in him, and how I can lead myself and others into building the Kingdom.
And so I will be joining the 5 month CGA Spring Semester starting January 17, 2020! From January to May I will be living with other CGA participants and my weeks will include classes on Mondays from 9am to 5pm, and Tuesdays through Friday 9am to noon. There are also CGA events that we attend that include worship, outreach and discipleship. During our classroom sessions we will be taught topics on spiritual gifts, knowledge of God, holistic living, self-knowledge, communication, and other leadership and Kingdom skills. Along with classes and events we are expected to work a part time job where we are able to put into practice what we are learning in the program. Afterwards we gather together for a time of feedback and hearing how we were able to use our skills practically.
I am beyond excited for this opportunity to be involved in a program that I hope will teach me to refine my identity in Christ and help me to further walk in the healing that was set in motion from the Race. There is so much expectancy for how God is going to teach me and my fellow participants how to walk out the call of the Gospel practically in day to day life. I’m also hoping to walk away from this 5 month journey with a deeper knowledge of where I’m meant to go next.
I cannot begin to thank each and every one of you that has been a part of my journey, whether it was supporting me financially, sharing my blogs, or just coming beside me in prayer. You will never know just how grateful I am for you. Thank you for being a part of a trip that truly changed my life forever. And again I’m asking for your support whether that be subscribing and sharing my blog, partnering with me in prayer, or supporting me financially any of these would be such a blessing. The amount that I am raising will go towards my housing while in the program, utilities, books, and professional speakers and classroom tools. Thank you for your prayers and support!!
-Lakota
