Race

Why would God ask me to journey halfway across the world? He asked me to travel here to accomplish 

His work which will glorify Him. That may sound simple, but it is true and deep.

So what is His “work” that I am to accomplish which will bring my Heavenly Father glory? Right now it is teaching English to elementary students, investing time and prayer into my teammates, and assisting at my church here in Kinmen wherever I can. These are my primary “tasks” but the list is definitely not limited to simply that.

God has given me one year to perform His sacred bidding. On the outset, a year does appear to be a very long period of time. When I think of Christmas, it seems so far away, but it’s not even half way through my time here. However, I have learned from experience just how quickly time can move. For example, the two years I spent at Verity seem as though they were but a few months. Where did that time go?

One year. It will pass quickly as I do the work of my heavenly Father. My desire is to accomplish much for the cause of Christ while I’m here in Kinmen, because I know this is where He wants me. It’s a race against time to do as much as I can with the time bestowed to me. I must race to teach my students; I must race to the needs of my teammates; I must race to my knees to pray. Why should I sit around on Facebook, Youtube, or ESPN, thinking I have all the time in the world, when there is work to be done? My life is "a vapor, that appears for a little time, and then vanishes away," (James 4:14b). In the scope of all eternity, life is so incredibly brief. Race for the prize. Race for Christ.

What happens when I get tired of this racing and want to slow down or quit altogether? As Alfred Pennyworth answered a distraught Bruce Wayne in the motion picture The Dark Knight, I must “Endure.” God will grant me the strength to continue on as I carry out His work, and as I strive to draw closer to Him every day.

May I say when God calls me from Taiwan,

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith," (2 Timothy 4:7).