The race is getting more and more real every day because I AM LESS THAN FOUR MONTHS AWAY FROM LAUNCH!!! I am so beyond excited about this season that is quickly approaching. I thought that I’d share some specifics about the various ways I’ll be serving others on the race, how it’s personal for me, and what the lord has been teaching me in this season of waiting and preparation.
My squad, now known as D squad or Gap D will be doing various forms of ministry, but what sets my route apart from the other gap year routes is that it mainly focuses on orphan care. In the process of being part of the foster care system, I felt god calling me into orphan care. Through caring for children whose lives were visibly broken, the lord exposed a need I was never fully aware of and birthed a passion for at risk kids. In seeing children who each had their own story, they each had the same need: to know the love of their father. I learned that stepping into brokenness is hard but worth it. I learned that when god breaks your heart, he breaks it for a reason; he uses passion to initiate action and change. When I came across this route, the lord exposed needs that I couldn’t turn my head from. He showed me areas where he wanted to use my heart for his glory.
Swaziland (now known as Eswatini), the first country we will be serving in, has the highest HIV/AIDs rate in the world. Impacting almost every family, 40% of Swazi children are orphans. As most other developing nations, Swaziland has an extremely high prevalence of poverty- 40% of people live on less than $1.25 a day. Adventures’ largest base is eswatini, meeting the needs of more than 8,000 orphans through more than 40 care points. Each team on my squad will be assigned to a care point for the duration of the time we are in Swaziland, meaning we will develop relationships with children through loving on them daily. Care points exist to provide children with food, clean water, education, healthcare, and discipleship. I strongly believe that raising up the next generation of leaders will promote radical change in Swaziland and I am so thankful for the opportunity to be a part of such.
After Swaziland, my squad will head to Jeffrey’s Bay, South Africa to serve alongside the Global Leadership Academy. GLA is a nonprofit Christian school created to help students discover their god given potential and thrive. We’ll teach classes, help with admin and improvement projects around the school, and more. We will also focus on community outreach in various ways.
In our third country, Ethiopia, we will serve with HOPEthiopia, a nonprofit dedicated to restoring the people and land of Ethiopia through four project initiatives. My squad will build relationships with orphans and their caregivers, as well as the neglected elderly population. From teaching kids to helping women learn English, there are so many different ways we can serve. We will promote physical restoration through reforestation projects. I’m super excited for Ethiopia because of the various things we will be doing, and also because of the ability to break away from the distractions of everyday life and experience the beauty of rural Africa and its people.
Lastly, my squad will head to Cambodia to focus on community outreach. Some of the things well be doing include teaching English, ministering to local street kids, and sharing the gospel with local families. Cambodia has a population of 15.76 million, with 97% being Buddhist- less than 1% are Christian. These statistics are devastating to me, because I see a country rooted in religion, millions not knowing the true love of their father. However, I am so hopeful about southeast Asia, because I know the kingdom is advancing, and I believe that by responding to the great commission, the gospel will continue to spread rapidly.
As the race gets closer, I’ve been thinking not just about the exciting parts of this journey but also the hard parts that god will use to grow me. I’m starting to realize the different things I will have to give up and give to the lord. While growing pains are painful, I’ve been coming to better understand the value of them- the value of fighting for how god wants to work in us even when it is hard. I know that this will be a time of transformation and I pray that the lord would work in the hearts of everyone on my squad, that we wouldn’t return the same as before.
My first fundraising deadline of $5,000 is approaching, and I am $990 away! I have until June 17th to meet this deadline and I am confident that God will provide. I also plan on doing another t shirt fundraiser soon, so be on the lookout for those. I greatly appreciate all of your support and ask for continued prayer over my squad. Please pray for our spiritual and emotional readiness as we prepare to launch, as well as for our fundraising needs to be met. Please reach out if you have any questions about my trip 🙂
