How ATL Changed My Life

I may have made it the whole year with the World Race without ever defining what “ATL” is and why it has become a lifestyle I can’t lose. 

We are in month 11 here in Amman, Jordan and we are all feeling the pin pricks on our heart of leaving soon. Some are ready, revving up for the future and ready to move on to the next thing. Some are sad, unsure of what is next and wondering if they will ever have a season this sweet again. Some are neutral, tired, a little burnt out. Some of us feel a version of all of it. I think in some ways I do, I’ll say it. 

I’ve been doing only a little bit of processing the year lately. It’s a hard thing to try to think through because God has done so much and honestly I see Him in every day. I live in a constant reminder of His favor and goodness and control over everything around me. However, in my little moments of processing I’ve realized that my experience here on the field with the World Race isn’t something that’s ending. I don’t say that because I’m headed back on the field in January. I say that because I’m not the same person I was when I started this thing and when Jesus changes you, he doesn’t just stop the work; He’s committed to finishing what he’s started.

ATL stands for “Ask the Lord.” It’s a World Race term no doubt but as you learn and grow on the race it becomes more of a lifestyle than anything else. We are taught that every move we make, every plan for the day, everyone we minister to and everything we lead should include the Lord’s opinion. Put simply, we make our decisions with Him and we let Him make our schedule. Now some of you are probably thinking that that’s insane. “Do you let the Lord choose your breakfast coffee flavor too?” No. We have freedom as believers, but letting the Lord lead your day is pretty fun and adventurous and including Him in decisions leads to blessing and walking in His will. It’s something that sounds strange until you actually put it into practice. 

Eleven months of letting the Lord lead my days has brought stories upon stories that I’ll cherish forever. 

It’s things like:

• Buying a sandwich for a small boy on the street and two secret believers coming up to translate for us and then having dinner with them learning about how they left their Muslim families for the faith
• Feeling like you should go down a certain street that leads you to a shop where you have a gospel conversation with someone who God had been priming for years
• Being told by the Lord to keep hiking even when you have no money and no food and being fed for 10 straight days
• The Holy Spirit prompting me to approach a huge dude on the street and give him a prophetic word and Him telling me he was just heading to make a deal with the devil and had just prayed God would intercept Him
• God asking me to sit on a bench rather than approach a bunch of people who don’t want to hear about the Gospel and then having a girl plop right down and ask to hear it

ATL is thrilling. It starts with being interruptible, praying, and asking God to highlight situations you should be a part of.  It’s an adventure every day. 

And here’s the thing. It doesn’t just need to happen while abroad or while on a specified “mission.” Every day should be a mission anyway right? 

Engaging in a year of ATL has changed my life. It’s taught me to see God in every interaction, to invite Him to lead my day and to welcome the opportunity to do His biding, spread His love and work for Him no matter what I’m doing. 

Practically, this is going to look like walking up to that person in the grocery store God put on my heart and telling them they are loved. It’s going to look like stopping to pray for that homeless person on the street everyone passes by. It looks like praying for my day and asking God to fill it when I don’t have plans. Sometimes it will look a little more intentional like heading to a park and asking the Lord to give me someone to encourage. 

It’s not something I can just turn off. My eyes have been opened and in some ways have become His eyes. I’ve started to see people as His children, loved and wanted and in need of Him.

The World Race puts ATL into practice and allows you to get disciplined in it surrounded by community to encourage you along the way, just like a sport you train for or any developed skill. However, you don’t need a World Race experience to input ATL into YOUR life. Just go. Just try it. Take a day when you don’t have plans and pray and ask the Lord what He has for you. If you don’t hear anything, walk outside the door and ask Him to highlight someone for you. If you still don’t hear anything, engage someone anyway. It will be clumsy at first and maybe even slightly uncomfortable but He will lead you and you’ll see His goodness at work. 

My encouragement to you is that nothing in the Kingdom of God is limited to only certain people. We ALL have access to this kind of life with the Father if we want it. You don’t need to be a missionary, a preacher, or a Jesus Freak, you just need to be willing. God does wonders with a willing heart. 

So are you ready to try it? Are you ready to ask the Lord and see Him move?