So if you haven’t heard already, I am back from my training camp down in Gainesville, Georgia.
I am back from the ten days that reaffirmed my calling to this ministry.
I started the week having never flown on a plane, and never being that far away from home. To be honest, I absolutely loved it (sorry Mom & Dad). I can’t say good enough things about the Adventures in Missions staff they really made our week amazingly eye-opening.
There has never been a doubt in my mind that God wanted me here.
No, I don’t mean Georgia. And no, I don’t mean Canada.
God wants me here in this place of knowing that I am supposed to abandon my earthly possessions, and give up a year of my life to serve him through missions.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” – Matthew 28:19
This past week of blistering heat, unforeseeable rain, and too many ‘curveballs’ to count, 100% reaffirmed my calling to this ministry.
From eating chicken feet, to sharing gear with fellow squadmates (sorry about the snoring Kole), this training camp has readily prepared me for what I am about to experience this next year overseas.
I have also met my long lost family! Before these past 10 days I had no idea that they even existed, or even that I needed them in my life, but you learn something new everyday.
These people challenge me, support me, and love me no matter what. That is why I call them family.
From asking each other what “that persons name is,” to knowing SO much about them in just 10 days, I’d say we hit it off pretty well. I can’t wait to live with them over the next year.
To close I’d like to share a quick story with you:
At the Atlanta airport waiting to leave, we met three girls who were with Young Life. Young Life is a Christian organization other than Adventures in Missions that is ushering young people (like me) to live like Christ.
We didn’t know them before hand, we just said Hi at the airport.
One thing led to another, and we told them what we were there for. The three girls stood up and asked if they could pray for us. We gladly accepted their request.
So we (20 something-year-olds) all stood in a circle holding hands in the middle of the Atlanta airport, praying. These girls prayed blessings upon us and our journey. Then the last girl from Young Life closed the prayer with this:
“God, I just pray that you protect our new friends who have given up so much and said ‘YES‘ to you.”
I could feel all of our hands tighten.
Earlier this past week my squadmates and I sat through a message/session about saying YES to God. That we, the new world racers, were saying YES to God by going this fall on this missions trip.
That moment, when those three random girls prayed for us at that airport, I knew God was going to do big things for us and the people we encounter this next year.
If that God moment didn’t prove it, I don’t know what did.
