CGA

    I’ve been home from the world race for about 8 months and surely I’ve found a “real job” or a “career” to step into by now. Well, I’m here to confidently tell you that long term… I have no idea what I’m doing with my life and I’m okay with that! Stepping into a “career” or a “real job” is not what the Lord has for me right now and I have a lot of peace (also excitement) with that. I’ve had a few temporary jobs since being back home and I’ve been working at a city camp this summer. Each of these jobs have been such blessings and I can see the Lord’s hand in all of them individually. He’s also taught me a LOT through these jobs and He’s opened my eyes to things I wasn’t always aware of. It has been hard at times but also so good! His provision has been abundant through these jobs and He’s given me the sweetest people to have in my physical space each day. God has been so faithful in this season of waiting. As I reflect, I can see how He’s answered prayer after prayer and He’s taught me more about His character than I ever could imagine. He’s also taught me a lot about dependency and how to depend on Him fully. Getting to depend on a Father that loves us deeply, provides for us and is always walking before us, behind us and right beside us is the greatest gift we could ever receive! It keeps me in awe of Him the more I think about it! He really loves His children! 

    Like I mentioned in my previous blog, a verse that God brought me back to a lot in this season and one I’ve meditated on a lot since being home from the Race is Isaiah 40:31. “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 ESV. Coming home from the race was a lot harder than I thought it would be. I learned there were many things that I needed to simply wait for Him in! As I was learning and praying about how to wait, the Lord showed me that the reason it was so hard for me to wait on Him was because of my own sense of control. Instead of waiting on the Lord and allowing Him to renew my strength, I was grasping onto any sense of control I could, out of my weakness. Grasping onto control felt more comfortable because it was me acting out of self protection and not fully trusting the Lord. I liked the feeling that my life wasn’t out of control. What I thought was being “in control” meant controlling what I could out of my own strength. My perspective was very much an earthly perspective and not so much heavenly. Laying this idea down at Jesus’ feet and laying down my pride was an interesting process. Lots of learning took place through this process and I was able to meet the Lord in ways I never had before. It was through the surrender of control where the Lord was able to make me stronger and grow my faith in Him. I think I’ll always be in a state of learning how to let go, surrender control and wait on the Lord. As we grow and learn about Jesus, I think we will become aware of more things in our lives that we can let go of and surrender control in. Waiting on the Lord and relying on Him to make us stronger is a process that can be intimidating because it is out of our control. However, if we trust the Lord, push through the hard things and continue to desire to grow, it will be so rewarding! I remember praying back in month 7 of the World Race for the Lord to teach me how to deepen my dependency on Him post Race. I wasn’t sure what that was going to look like, nor did I know it would be so hard, but praise God for answering my prayer. I feel thankful for the circumstances He gave me that led me into deeper dependency on Him and a more intimate relationship with Him. Honestly, these past 8 months of being home from the race have been the biggest blessing in my relationship with the Lord. They were hard and they came with many trials but there’s something so sweet about walking through a dark tunnel with the Lord and letting Him lead you out into the light on the other side. 

So, what’s next? 

    As I was praying about what was next and where the Lord was leading me, there were several “options” running through my head. How was I supposed to decide on something? They all honestly felt scary so I didn’t know which one I was going to do. But through a lot of prayer and seeking the lord, He continued to bring one of the options up over and over again. So, really the Lord made the decision for me, lol! It wasn’t the option I thought I’d actually be doing and I definitely wrestled the Lord with it for a few months. But, the Lord was so gracious in the process and continuously provided me with clarity (in a lot of ways) that this was an opportunity for me to grow and if I moved forward in it, it would be so good for me. On August 12th, I will be starting a leadership/discipleship program called CGA (Center for Global Action). This leadership program is through Adventures In Missions, the same organization I partnered with for the World Race. It’s a 4 month program that I will be living in Gainesville, GA for. 

    I’ve had a desire, for many years, to do a leadership/discipleship program at some point in my life. It’s cool to see the Lord answer that prayer and provide me with this opportunity now. I believe that we all need to know how to lead well in life and that we show people Jesus’ character while doing so. It doesn’t matter if you have a job in corporate America, in a school, you’re a missionary or a stay at home parent, all of these positions need Jesus and good leadership. CGA focuses on equipping and building up followers of Jesus to be Christ-like leaders in their communities. They do this by following the leadership model of Jesus and focusing heavily on scripture. The example of Jesus’ life and how He lived is what we will be using as our example of how we should lead/live. CGA’s motto is “know yourself, lead yourself, lead others.” I think this motto is so cool and was something that really stood out to me while deciding to say “yes” to CGA. The reason I love this motto so much is because of how true it is and also as sad as this is, it’s not something I’ve seen practiced a ton in this world. In order to lead anyone well, it starts with yourself. If you don’t know your true self, you can’t lead yourself well or others well. I’m excited to step into this season of learning and growth. One of the parts I’m most excited about is learning more scripture. Biblical knowledge isn’t my strong suit, but I’ve grown such a strong desire to know more. I’m excited to be led into further growth by those leading the program and by my classmates. Learning alongside these people, I know will be such a sweet blessing! 

    Lastly, with stepping into this next season, it does come with preparation in many ways. One way of preparation required, like the world race, is fundraising. For CGA I will need to fundraise $5,950. This will cover the full 4 months of classes as well as our housing cost. During our time fundraising we will have to meet specific fundraising deadlines, like we did on the world race. My first deadline is the day the program starts (August 12th) and I will need to have raised $2000. I will also be sending out support letters in the coming weeks so I’ll post about those soon. Something I learned during my fundraising journey last year that really changed my perspective was that fundraising is not about the person fundraising the money. Fundraising is about building a group of supporters who believe in what the Lord is doing in and through my life, for the kingdom. It’s about walking alongside and partnering with the Lord through what he’s called me to step into. To be honest, fundraising was not my favorite thing to do last year because it was (and still can be) uncomfortable for me. But I also know now that it’s not about me and how I feel. It is about the Lord and His Kingdom. Getting to a place of believing this was a very humbling process last year on the world race and I’m excited to see what else the lord teaches me through this new fundraising journey.

    Another thing that is really important to me, and something the Lord has laid on my heart a lot over the last few months, is prayer. I have seen the power of prayer and the blessing of knowing the Lord deeper through prayer. Prayer is one of those things that simply helps me walk through life more lightheartedly, encouraged and grateful. This comes from both my own prayer life, as well as others who pray over me. I feel like I’m in a season of life where the Lord is having me ask for prayer more often. I haven’t always been great at this in the past but in the last few months this has been something the Lord has been challenging me in. It helps me remember the importance of community, that I’m not meant to walk through life alone and also that I’m not the one in control. It’s also a good reminder that like all of us, I need prayer. So, this is me asking for prayer as I follow the Lord into this next season. Thanks in advance for all of you that I know will be/have been praying for me.

    If you feel led to partner with me financially or through prayer, I’d love to connect with you after you pray about how the Lord is leading you to do so. I’m excited to see all of the ways the Lord provides for me in this next season and also who He leads to support me as I walk through this program. 

    Thanks for reading yet another one of my blogs. Y’all reading my blogs really does make me feel so supported and loved, so thank you! I’m excited to continue to write blogs and newsletters during this next season of my life. If you want to be notified when I post a new blog/newsletter, you can “subscribe” with your email at the top of the page. Or if you want, you can also just send me your email and I can do it for you! Also, if you have any questions, please reach out! I’d love to chat with you! Also… if you have any prayer requests, I’d love to be praying for you, too! Let me know how I can be in prayer for you. 🙂

Love y’all,

Brianne

Ways you can support:

-Reading my blog

-Financially

  1. the “donate” button at the top of my blog page

  2. venmo – @Brianne-VanVoorhis

  3. cashapp – $BrianneVanVoorhis

  4. cash/check – message me for more info on how to mail cash/checks

 -Prayer