As a recent high school graduate, I recognize I don’t have a ton of experience when it comes to massive decision making skills. It’s always been rather straightforward growing up: I was going to school and working towards my goals. In high school I was always trying to appreciate what that chapter of my life had to offer. I loved it. However, I was restless. When big decision making time came junior year, I was enthused to start figuring out post high school plans because I was so excited for something new. Like so many others, I had always planned on the first “something new” to be college. I’ve always been excited for college and looked forward to going so I didn’t see why I should look into anything different but when it came down to it, I found myself incapable of feeling at peace with any decision on where to go or what to study. I love how many possibilities there are for a path after high school but it became a stressor when I was unable to narrow them down. Around this time my youth pastor gave some teachings on hearing God’s voice and finding his desire for your life. I began to practice giving the decision making, and all the anxieties I had along with it, up to God. Once I started turning to God in regards to my future, my eyes were opened to how many opportunities a year off from school had to offer. I’d always been conscious of “gap years” as an option but had never thought seriously about what a year off before college could mean for me personally. I started getting excited about countless gap year options I found but part of me was scared to do something other than what I was comfortable with and had been intending to do would do all my life. At one point I came close to taking what I felt was the “safe” route and enrolling in a school near home that I had liked. As I went about it however, I came to the realization that, in a way, I was running from what I felt God wants for me because of fear of the uncertainties. I couldn’t ignore how restless I felt, especially after I had entertained the idea so much. A gap year truly isn’t anything wild, I had just made it such a big thing in my head. If I can’t take small steps like these outside of my comfort zone though, I won’t be prepared to live boldly in the future. I felt certain God intended something more for me before I committed to years of college.
As I began to plan for my year off from school I had a few main intentions for the time I had. I wanted to travel and gain exposure to more of the world, I wanted to learn life skills outside of academic teachings, and I wanted to serve. I’ve always wanted to go on a mission trip but struggled to find the time and money. In a year without school taking up the majority of my time I want to give my time and focus to the Lord. I looked into countless programs and opportunities regarding travel and volunteering but was wary of spending time and money on programs that didn’t have the best intentions or impact. I heard about the world race when I had an incredibly helpful conversation at a tennis match of mine with someone who knew a lot of people who had done mission trips. I was frustrated at the time because I wasn’t able to play on account of a pain in my leg. I had no idea where it came from since I didn’t remember pulling anything. If I hadn’t sat out from the match though, I would never have looked into the world race. That random pain resulted in me finding this incredible group to serve the Lord with for 6 months. After I heard about it, I went down a World Race rabbit hole of vlogs and information about their missions and what they‘re about. I found myself getting more and more excited about the work they do and the ministry partners they work with in all the different countries. I’m looking forward to serving and learning from projects that are already integrated into the communities where I’ll be.
I’m incredibly excited for what this trip has to offer me personally. I’ll constantly work to grow closer with God and make connections with people I’m serving with and those who I serve. I will get to travel abroad like I’ve been dreaming of doing for years. I will grow in character and I will grow as a Christian. All these were my biggest priorities for my gap year. However, none of this is as important as what I will be doing for the Lord. The work I will do and the time I will give will be for God’s glory and on account of my understanding that this is his will for me right now.
