Amanda Buck’ s mission story doesn’ t start on the mission field— it begins amid the roar of racecars and the flurry of press releases. For nearly five years, she lived life in the fast lane, working in motorsport public relations( PR) and traveling coast to coast with the IMSA SportsCar and IndyCar series. It was thrilling, chaotic, and deeply engaging. She loved the storytelling, the camaraderie, and the adrenaline. But beneath the surface, something was missing.
Raised in a Christian home, Amanda knew about the Lord. Yet it wasn’ t until after university, during a career she jokingly called a“ traveling circus,” that she began asking deeper questions, wanting to make her faith her own.“ I spent a lot of time in college being selfish,” she admits.“ I thought that’ s what I was supposed to do— focus on me. But it left me feeling empty.”
That emptiness became a turning point. As she reevaluated her life’ s direction, Amanda realized that pursuing her own desires would never satisfy her soul.“ Anything less than seeking God and his will was going to keep me feeling hollow,” she says. God had been working quietly all along. Even when Amanda wasn’ t putting him first, he was shaping her heart through her Christian upbringing, her PR work, her involvement in founding a local Christian nonprofit with her family, and through the growing discontent that nudged her toward something more. One verse from the Psalms kept resurfacing, Psalm 37:4,“ Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Amanda had always focused on the second part of that verse— God giving her desires. But one day, the first part struck her hard:“ Delight yourself in the Lord.” That was the invitation. That was the change.“ I realized my deepest desire should be for God alone,” she says.“ And when I genuinely sought him, everything else started to fall into place.”
Still, mission work wasn’ t on her radar. In fact, she had grown up strongly opposed to overseas missions.“ I never imagined God would call me to that,” she laughs. But God’ s plans are rarely predictable and always purposeful.
Amanda and her husband, Daniel, joined OMS and served nearly five years in Budapest, Hungary. Today, she is based in the U. S. as a pre-field coach, supporting new missionary candidates as they prepare to answer their call.
Her journey proves that God doesn’ t waste our past; he repurposes it. Amanda’ s skills in PR, relationship-building, and handling high-pressure situations now serve the kingdom in ways she never imagined.
She often ponders a line from C. S. Lewis’ The Weight of Glory,“ You have never met a mere mortal.” It’ s a reminder that every person bears the image of God and everyone’ s life is an invitation to reflect his glory.
So, what if missions isn’ t just for the“ spiritually elite”? What if it’ s for storytellers, PR professionals, race fans, and people who once said never? What if God is already shaping your desires— even in the chaos, even in the waiting? Maybe it’ s time to stop asking,“ What do I want to do?” and start asking,“ Lord, what are you inviting me into?”
photos, page 6, top: Amanda worked for five years in the fast lanes of motorsport PR. bottom: Today, Amanda serves as a pre-field coach, preparing missionaries to begin their journeys, including summer interns in Colombia. page 7: Amanda served for several years in
Hungary, working with young people at English camps each summer.
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