We still have expenses that are not covered by our WR fundraising. If you would like to join our support team, sponsor our anniversary hotel cost (June 28th), or send a birthday gift – here is our new donation link: Support Kayla & RJ
I’m 27. I never would have imagined I’d ever celebrate a birthday in Ethiopia! Today has been a birthday that I will never forget. Kayla surprised me and planned a birthday dinner with all of the friends we have made here in Addis Ababa. It was one of the few times I have genuinely felt I was “home” on the World Race. It’s going to be difficult to say “see you soon” to Ethiopia tomorrow as we head to Rwanda for Month 10. I can’t wait to see where God will lead us in year 27 of life with Him.
*pictures to come, wifi in Ethiopia is a little slow.
27 Favorite World Race Memories
1. Making chili with Lauren in Chile on a chilly day with chili peppers and chili powder (Chile)
2. Hiking my first legit mountain with Team Ablaze in the foothills of the Andes, all no trail (Chile)
3. Spreading the gospel, eating pancakes, and spending time with our hosts – James and Coletta (Chile)
4. Meg falling into the sewer drain (Argentina)
5. Meeting, helping, and praying for Rosie – I still think she was probably an angel (Argentina)
6. Friendsgiving at the winery with friends I barely knew at the time that are now friends I couldn’t imagine not knowing (Argentina)
7. Spending time in the desert sharing Jesus and worshipping with the Huarpe people (Argentina)
8. Worship and prayer on Christmas at the rehabilitation houses (Bolivia)
9. Weekly Jam sessions with Matt Turner and the Boys (Bolivia)
10. When “Michael” scored a goal! (Bolivia)
11. Celebrating “Daniel’s” graduation from phase I of rehabilitation (Bolivia)
12. Becoming friends with Moab and praying over his wife and him on their anniversary (Cambodia)
13. Visiting the village to teach children English (Cambodia)
14. Worship on pub street (Cambodia)
15. Meeting the backpacker through a tattoo conversation and sharing the gospel (Cambodia)
16. Waterfalls and temples adventure day with Aves and Meggers (Cambodia)
17. Eating $1 street Pad Thai every day (Thailand)
18. Amy getting sat on my an elephant (Thailand)
19. EVERYTHING about our ministry and time in Chang Khong with Groovy Crew (Thailand)
20. Dancing with Bry in the kitchen (Serbia)
21. Being Unsung Heroes in Nis and discovering Macedonia with the Wildflowers (Serbia/Macedonia)
22. Exploring Budapest with Team 5 in the Fire and sharing the gospel to some guys from Scotland at the bar (Hungary)
23. Kids camps! (Romania)
24. Serving, praying, and worshiping with parents at PVT (Romania)
25. Hiking to a waterfall with Amy, Rach, and Lys (Bulgaria)
26. The Parthenon, The Areopagus sermon rock, ancient ruins, walking tours, sailboats, and prayers for refugees in Greece with our Team Summit friends & Amy/Shan (Greece)
*pictures to come, wifi in Ethiopia is a little slow.
27 Favorite World Race Lessons Learned
1. Community takes work and it’s always worth it.
2. People need people. Doing something is almost always better than nothing. – The key to being really effective is taking the time to find out what the right/best “something” is. It’s ok to learn along the way. Don’t let that stop you from saying “yes” and reaching out your hand!
3. Salmonella sucks. It was the worst sickness I have ever felt in my life!
4. The world runs on Nescafe, not Dunkin. – It’s literally everywhere. I am ashamed at how much Nescafe I have drank this year.
5. Nothing is impossible – Our Father is a LIVING GOD! – We’ve experienced the sick being healed, immigration laws being changed, protection from riots that have no other explanation, and a million more God winks.
6. Snickers really do satisfy hunger cravings. – I don’t think I had eaten a Snickers in years before the Race and now I have to do all I can to stay away from them.
7. You can get almost anything, anywhere. – I pack multiples of everything I use regularly and have found it ALL on every continent we’ve been to – except Chick-fil-a…
8. $1 street pad thai is my favorite food in the world.
9. Embracing the tension in life is healthy. – It’s how we know that we are truly relying on God.
10. God uses anyone and anything for His good.
11. Don’t mess with altitude. – We slept at 14,000 ft. elevation in Bolivia and the sickness was tough! I would last about 1 run down the court playing soccer with boys before I got winded.
12. Worship is my weapon and my safe place. – The Lord talks to me through worship.
13. Vegetables actually taste good – A special thank you to Lauren and Amy for changing my life.
14. I hate wet places, especially bathrooms. – Also, almost all bathrooms in SE Asia are wet.
15. Life is ALL about the choices we make. – Our daily walk with Jesus, our relationships, our jobs, our health, our family life, our finances, EVERYTHING.
16. I LOVE CAMBODIA and the friends we have there! – Also, Asia is my favorite continent.
17. Everything in the US is over-priced. – Can you believe we can get 6 fresh avocados for $1? We make guacamole for everything!
18. Music is the universal language of the world. – I am SO SO SO SO glad I brought my guitar on the Race.
19. I enjoying helping people and teams grow. – I have learned so much as a Squad Leader and I feel like the Lord is using this experience and my previous for something big ahead!
20. I am married to the most adventurous woman on the planet. – Kayla and I are having so much fun together traveling the world, growing in our relationship with Jesus, and loving on people.
21. There are no off days of ministry with Christ. – Some of my favorite ministry moments have happened on “off-days” and just being willing to be interrupted.
22. The gospel is GOOD NEWS and it’s refreshing to people’s souls when we share it in love. – It’s not scary. It’s LIFE!
23. I get rest from being outside. – “Wanna hike?” has become my go-to adventure day idea.
24. Communicating expectations and sharing when those are met or not met will eliminate 92% of all organizational problems.
25. I am not in control, God is always in control.
26. Water can come out of the ground carbonated! – It’s true! You can find carbonated springs in Ambo, Ethiopia. It’s tastes like clean sparkling water. I can’t wait to drink my first lime LaCroix when we get home.
27. God provides. – I can’t even begin to count the number of “strangers” that have invited us into their homes, shared their food with us, and given us a place to sleep. Never have we been left dry. He has always come through!
Such good lessons. You ran a great race!
This is so great! Awesome lessons you’ve learned – thanks for choosing in! Love you brother!