This Isn’t What I Signed Up For…

*Let me start off by saying my title is meant as pure “clickbait” and in NO WAY reflective of my time spent on The Race thus far. PLEASE do not take it the wrong way…*

When I signed up for The World Race I knew that things would change along the way; my home would change month by month, there is a possibility that my team will change along the way, my heart will change as I come in contact with new places and faces, and ultimately I will change as a person as I grow more intimately on this journey with the Lord.

I have always been the type of person who likes to feel like I have some sort of semblance of control in any given situation. I like to say I’m “go-with-the-flow,” but I won’t lie that I will more likely than not freak out if a plan changes. Something we were frequently told both at Training Camp and at Launch was to go into The World Race with no expectations, yet at the same time to be expectant for God to move… In other words, I suppose you could say we should be unexpectantly expectant for what is to come. 

My team and I are serving in Belmopan, Belize for the month and I must admit that it isn’t at all what I thought it was going to be. Before we arrived our team leader had been given information as to what our ministry assignment entailed, which she went on to share with us. If you read my blog “I Can’t BELIZE It” than you know that I explained a little bit about what we were going to be doing for this first month.

We arrived to Belize on Wednesday, October the 10th and once we made it to our new home for the month, we were given the rest of the day to rest and recuperate from our travels. We were then given Thursday off… and Friday… Saturday’s are our off days anyway so that equaled another day of rest… and Sunday’s are our Sabbaths so you guessed it, another off day… By the time Sunday evening rolled around we were going a little crazy and couldn’t wait to finally begin ministry the next day. Monday morning came and we were informed that it was a National holiday in Belize, so we were told to once again “take the day off.” My team and I jokingly said that God gave us 6 days of Sabbath.

As Monday lagged on, my team and I were contacted by someone who works closely with our ministry host and we were told that our ministry assignment would now consist of speaking to local students at a comprehensive school (ages 12-16; the equivalent of American high school), and that we would begin the very next day. Was this what we were told we would be doing for the month of October? No. Did we care? Not in the slightest, at that point we were so excited that we were finally about to begin ministry on The World Race! 

Kerm, the man who helped connect us with this job, picked us up early Tuesday morning to head off to the school. Once we packed into his car he said to us, “okay so what do any of you know about mental health?” He went on to explain that we would be speaking to all of the life skills classes on the topic of mental health, and that we would be the ones responsible for running these classes. One of my teammate’s, Hannah, has extensive training and practice in sharing on the importance of mental health within a classroom setting… I mean seriously, God is the COOLEST!!

Was our ministry supposed to be at a school this month? No. Did we think we would become teachers and have the responsibility of managing 5-7 classes Monday through Friday? No. Did I realize that God still had SO much more for me to learn and experience when it came to facing and continuing to heal my own mental health? No.

Sometimes plans change. This month hasn’t at all been what my team and I thought it would be, but honestly I wouldn’t change a single thing about how it has gone so far. I’m thankful that God is showing me that I can trust His plan, rather than relying on my own or ones that others give me. I’m thankful for the love and compassion that these students show me on a daily basis through a laugh, a smile, and a kind word. I’m thankful that my Papa continues to show me time and time again that He sees me right where I am, and not only does He have me planted there for a purpose, but He’s the master gardener staying right there with me through it all.  

-Meagan