I turned down a job offer in Antarctica to go to Guatemala.

100% true. I had a winter contract offer to work at the McMurdo base in Antarctica! I was in the process of onboarding with Gana-A'Yoo to be apart of the dining staff for the February-October 2025 season.

Under the Antarctic treaty the continent is for peaceful purposes and scientific investigation only, not capital gain. McMurdo is an American base, and the largest base on the continent. It operates 24/7 like a small village. Researchers and support staff all need to eat at various times, depending on their shift, so the kitchen stays open!

My goal in working in Antarctica was to achieve going to all seven continents. Tourism to the ice is extraordinarily expensive, so working an entry-level job at the base was my best bet for getting on the ice!

There was just one problem...I had felt the Lord call me to missions, and I was actively in the process of applying with AIM. I thought one season in Antarctica would be reasonable, and then I could pick up the missions journey when I got back, right?

I had an interview scheduled at the home office I was going to drive up to Gainesville for. I already planned in my head to do the interview as a courtesy, and send a polite "thanks, but not yet. Let's pick this up when I'm off the ice." email to AIM staff, and go on my merry way.

Of course the Lord always has a better plan. As I walked around the AIM base, a peace that passed all understanding fell on me while I breathed in that fresh north Georgia air. Oh no, I think the Lord is changing my mind! I couldn't understand what exactly it was that moved me so deeply other than the Spirit. I drove up to Gainesville fully set on Antarctica, now I wasn't sure at all what to do.

I went home and turned down the Antarctica job. Maybe one of these days I'll get to go, but what the Lord had in store for me in Guatemala that summer was far above and beyond what I could have ever asked or imagined. Just another way the crazy will of the Lord was at work in placing me in Guate!

And I don't regret it a single bit!

Proverbs 16:9 The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

Some fun facts I learned about Antarctica while I was researching work:

1. The Mcmurdo base inside is kept at around 70 degrees (fahrenheit) year round
2. There is a library, "thrift" store, climbing wall, and gym, at the base
3. Every year a music festival is put on by the deployers called IceStock. It's the southernmost music festival in the world
4. You can rent instruments and ski equipment
5. There is/was an annual tug-of-war competition between the U.S. bases, and the New Zealand bases

~Sarah