Wednesday, October 20, 2004
An invitation...
There are those of you who have found something of interest at "Updates and Ramblings" over the past months. Thanks for your support as well as comments. On October 11 I embarked on my around the world excursion. This blog is no longer my primary place for exposing my latest updates and ramblings. I invite you to become a faithful reader at CrossingTheGlobe.com. In order to facilitate that, I would like to give you a tour.
The Latest & Journals - These two areas are the backbone of the site. These are the elements that we are committed to keeping updated on a regular basis. The Latest is intended to keep you posted on where in the world we are along with a quick peek into what is going on in our lives. Often times it will serve to alert you to new updates on the site as well. The Journals go into more depth as to what life on the go looks like. These are excerpts of our thinking that will let you know the details of where we are going, who we are seeing, and of course our take on things. You'll want to check back regularly to read these.
Write-Ups & Media - Our intention is to keep a somewhat steady stream of Write-Ups appearing on the site. These are to look a bit more like an article: crisp writing and thought provoking. The Media page is where you can see the people and places of the trip through photos. We are taking lots and lots of great pictures, and are working on how to get the best ones on the site.
Purpose & Bios - We hope that everyone who stops by at CrossingTheGlobe.com reads the Purpose page at some point. This is the heart and soul of why we are taking the time and spending the money to do what we're doing. The Bios are just a chance for you to get to know us better. Whether you've never met us or have known us for ten years, you probably don't know everything that we put about ourselves in the Bios.
Prayer Page - For the three countries that we are doing ministry in, we have included ways that you can be partnering with us in prayer. We would love to see more believers praying for the world and striving to see the world through God's eyes.
Give us your love, feedback, comments, etc. in the Say It box. What you write here will be emailed directly to the three of us.
I invite you to take advantage of this site and share in our lives and travels.
The Latest & Journals - These two areas are the backbone of the site. These are the elements that we are committed to keeping updated on a regular basis. The Latest is intended to keep you posted on where in the world we are along with a quick peek into what is going on in our lives. Often times it will serve to alert you to new updates on the site as well. The Journals go into more depth as to what life on the go looks like. These are excerpts of our thinking that will let you know the details of where we are going, who we are seeing, and of course our take on things. You'll want to check back regularly to read these.
Write-Ups & Media - Our intention is to keep a somewhat steady stream of Write-Ups appearing on the site. These are to look a bit more like an article: crisp writing and thought provoking. The Media page is where you can see the people and places of the trip through photos. We are taking lots and lots of great pictures, and are working on how to get the best ones on the site.
Purpose & Bios - We hope that everyone who stops by at CrossingTheGlobe.com reads the Purpose page at some point. This is the heart and soul of why we are taking the time and spending the money to do what we're doing. The Bios are just a chance for you to get to know us better. Whether you've never met us or have known us for ten years, you probably don't know everything that we put about ourselves in the Bios.
Prayer Page - For the three countries that we are doing ministry in, we have included ways that you can be partnering with us in prayer. We would love to see more believers praying for the world and striving to see the world through God's eyes.
Give us your love, feedback, comments, etc. in the Say It box. What you write here will be emailed directly to the three of us.
I invite you to take advantage of this site and share in our lives and travels.
Monday, October 04, 2004
5 Reasons to NOT do an Around the World Trip
[This article was initially published as a "Write Up" at CrossingTheGlobe.com]
An around the world trip has a lot of things going for it. There’s the adventure of distant lands, beautiful places, exciting surprises, and intriguing people. On top of that one could add the priceless value of life-shaping experiences. Learning and opportunities to be stretched mentally and emotionally can be the norm. In our case the joy of being a part of meaningful ministries will be amazing. [Please refer to the PURPOSE page at CrossingTheGlobe.com to see a thorough out-working of our reasons that have committed us to an around the world trip.] Once you throw all of that on the table, why in the world wouldn’t someone want to do a trip like this?
Here are 5 reasons that are worth thinking about:
1. It’s a lot of work
Most people have had the experience of planning a weeklong trip or vacation of some sort. You know the work that goes into making something like that the best experience possible. Now multiply that amount of effort, planning, and details by about thirty! Except it’s more than that. Because of the nature of this kind of beast, the workload actually grows exponentially. In planning a vacation when have you had to deal with changing your health insurance plan or figuring out whether you need a regular visa to India or a multiple entry visa? There’s no question that a trip of this magnitude takes work! Think passports, visas, appropriate gear, international contacts, airfare, guidebooks, vaccinations, travel itineraries, backup plans, climate changes, monsoons, mosquito seasons, and on and on. There’s no end to the amount of things that are clamoring for your attention and time in preparing for one of these efforts.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to put in the work and effort that it takes to plan, prepare, and equip yourself effectively.
2. It’s an uphill battle
Society doesn’t have a place for you. When you go to fill out a form and it asks for your occupation, you’ll have nothing to say. You are off the charts as far as society is concerned. You are going against the grain of what our culture expects of people. Wherever you are in life, an around the world trip is not the next expected step on the ladder of life. For me, all of my peers that were graduating from college were launching out into “real life”. They were getting married, getting jobs, getting mortgages. I was reading the latest travel guide to Southeast Asia. When your plans come up in conversation, people will cock their heads a bit to the side, squint their eyes a bit, and say “Why are you doing that?” You will simply find that others won’t understand until you help them.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to be misunderstood and to go against the grain of the expected next step for your life.
3. You’ll probably get a disease
Here I’m basically just making the point that world travel isn’t a paradise of ritzy resorts with lavish meals and servants attending to your every wish. In fact try and picture whatever the opposite of that is. If you’re really traveling the world – and not just beach hopping around the Mediterranean – you’ll soon find that the vast majority of the world is far worse off than America. The quality of life in many other places pales in comparison. Sicknesses wipe out young children. Quality food isn’t readily available. Whole portions of countries are limited access because of the existence of thousands of land mines. If you travel the world you are going to experience tough situations, see unsightly things, and you just might come home with an exotic disease.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to deal with the harsh reality of an uncomfortable and uncaring world.
4. The costs are too high
Kind of like having a kid, you can never afford an around the world trip. For one thing they never go on sale, and for another they never fit into your long-range financial goals. A trip of this nature is the farthest thing from a monetary investment; there will be no financial return. You drop thousands of dollars and “POOF!” . . . it’s gone. Even the stingiest traveler spends about $25 a day. That might not sound like much until you multiply that times 200 days, add several grand for airfare/transportation costs, take into account the fact that you have no income, and tack on any outstanding debts. Yikes. Obviously people who launch into a trek of this nature see something more valuable than money at hand.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to fork over the big bucks as well as assess what it is you really value.
5. You’ll be jealous of everyone else
I never saw this one coming, not in a million years. Possibly it is because of reasons one, two, three, and four enumerated above, but I found myself on the brink of embarking on this trip of a lifetime being significantly jealous of many of my peers. I believe it to be a healthy jealousy, but still jealousy nonetheless. My peers are busy settling into their normal day-to-day lives. They have homes, jobs, and teams that they coach. They have a community that they can call their own and relationships they can invest into. Meanwhile I will be a traveler. To me this shows the coming and going of different seasons of life. This is a healthy pull that will help me be eager to come back in 2005 and settle into a community in a meaningful way. This is my time to travel, this is my time for some worldwide ministry opportunities, and there will come a time to settle in.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to push away from the settled life for a while.
When I was first envisioning this around the world trip you can imagine that I was picturing myself taking off with nothing holding me back. And while I am probably more determined than ever to see this trek become a reality, I am not going forward blindly. My romanticized view of a trek of this nature is long gone. Like all things in life this trip has its tradeoffs. It is up to each individual, with the help of their trusted community, to decide which tradeoffs are right for them. What will it be for you? Have I just talked you out of an around the world trip or is your jaw more set than ever?
An around the world trip has a lot of things going for it. There’s the adventure of distant lands, beautiful places, exciting surprises, and intriguing people. On top of that one could add the priceless value of life-shaping experiences. Learning and opportunities to be stretched mentally and emotionally can be the norm. In our case the joy of being a part of meaningful ministries will be amazing. [Please refer to the PURPOSE page at CrossingTheGlobe.com to see a thorough out-working of our reasons that have committed us to an around the world trip.] Once you throw all of that on the table, why in the world wouldn’t someone want to do a trip like this?
Here are 5 reasons that are worth thinking about:
1. It’s a lot of work
Most people have had the experience of planning a weeklong trip or vacation of some sort. You know the work that goes into making something like that the best experience possible. Now multiply that amount of effort, planning, and details by about thirty! Except it’s more than that. Because of the nature of this kind of beast, the workload actually grows exponentially. In planning a vacation when have you had to deal with changing your health insurance plan or figuring out whether you need a regular visa to India or a multiple entry visa? There’s no question that a trip of this magnitude takes work! Think passports, visas, appropriate gear, international contacts, airfare, guidebooks, vaccinations, travel itineraries, backup plans, climate changes, monsoons, mosquito seasons, and on and on. There’s no end to the amount of things that are clamoring for your attention and time in preparing for one of these efforts.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to put in the work and effort that it takes to plan, prepare, and equip yourself effectively.
2. It’s an uphill battle
Society doesn’t have a place for you. When you go to fill out a form and it asks for your occupation, you’ll have nothing to say. You are off the charts as far as society is concerned. You are going against the grain of what our culture expects of people. Wherever you are in life, an around the world trip is not the next expected step on the ladder of life. For me, all of my peers that were graduating from college were launching out into “real life”. They were getting married, getting jobs, getting mortgages. I was reading the latest travel guide to Southeast Asia. When your plans come up in conversation, people will cock their heads a bit to the side, squint their eyes a bit, and say “Why are you doing that?” You will simply find that others won’t understand until you help them.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to be misunderstood and to go against the grain of the expected next step for your life.
3. You’ll probably get a disease
Here I’m basically just making the point that world travel isn’t a paradise of ritzy resorts with lavish meals and servants attending to your every wish. In fact try and picture whatever the opposite of that is. If you’re really traveling the world – and not just beach hopping around the Mediterranean – you’ll soon find that the vast majority of the world is far worse off than America. The quality of life in many other places pales in comparison. Sicknesses wipe out young children. Quality food isn’t readily available. Whole portions of countries are limited access because of the existence of thousands of land mines. If you travel the world you are going to experience tough situations, see unsightly things, and you just might come home with an exotic disease.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to deal with the harsh reality of an uncomfortable and uncaring world.
4. The costs are too high
Kind of like having a kid, you can never afford an around the world trip. For one thing they never go on sale, and for another they never fit into your long-range financial goals. A trip of this nature is the farthest thing from a monetary investment; there will be no financial return. You drop thousands of dollars and “POOF!” . . . it’s gone. Even the stingiest traveler spends about $25 a day. That might not sound like much until you multiply that times 200 days, add several grand for airfare/transportation costs, take into account the fact that you have no income, and tack on any outstanding debts. Yikes. Obviously people who launch into a trek of this nature see something more valuable than money at hand.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to fork over the big bucks as well as assess what it is you really value.
5. You’ll be jealous of everyone else
I never saw this one coming, not in a million years. Possibly it is because of reasons one, two, three, and four enumerated above, but I found myself on the brink of embarking on this trip of a lifetime being significantly jealous of many of my peers. I believe it to be a healthy jealousy, but still jealousy nonetheless. My peers are busy settling into their normal day-to-day lives. They have homes, jobs, and teams that they coach. They have a community that they can call their own and relationships they can invest into. Meanwhile I will be a traveler. To me this shows the coming and going of different seasons of life. This is a healthy pull that will help me be eager to come back in 2005 and settle into a community in a meaningful way. This is my time to travel, this is my time for some worldwide ministry opportunities, and there will come a time to settle in.
>>>>>Don’t even think about an around the world trip unless you’re ready to push away from the settled life for a while.
When I was first envisioning this around the world trip you can imagine that I was picturing myself taking off with nothing holding me back. And while I am probably more determined than ever to see this trek become a reality, I am not going forward blindly. My romanticized view of a trek of this nature is long gone. Like all things in life this trip has its tradeoffs. It is up to each individual, with the help of their trusted community, to decide which tradeoffs are right for them. What will it be for you? Have I just talked you out of an around the world trip or is your jaw more set than ever?
