- Community is hard
– I much as I love each and every one on my team and everyone that I work with there can be times where you are completely over people. There will be days where you do not want to share you peanut butter for the fourth time in a row, or have three kids pull your hair at your ministry, or when all you want to do is type a blog and there is no quite time.
- Be as flexible as possible
– There will be days where you think you are going to have a rest day and it turns out to be the busiest day of the month. Or you think all you have scheduled is a 7:00am activity and it does not start till 11:00am. This will happen more often than not. Things will not go as expected and things will change at a seconds notice. I have learned though to just row with the punches, be flexible, and don’t hold on to schedules or time frames.
- Quiet time is a must
– There have been mornings where I have been so busy that I have not been able to have quiet time and if I think back they were some pretty hard days. Starting out my day with quiet time with the Lord set a new start to my day. It gives me a new perspective of what the Lord has for me that day. This time gives me the time to reflect on what the Lord is teaching me and just being able to reflect on my time on the race.
- Love as deeply until your heart breaks
– Goodbyes are never easy and they are so much harder when you but all you heart into the relationship they are worth the heartbreak. They mean so much more when you have fully committed to them. So I encourage you to love as deeply as you can. Build relationships with everyone you meet. Remember names and faces. Surface level friendships are not something that are going to be remembered after you leave that country. But make friendships that make you long to come back to see their face.
- Let yourself fall in love
– There have been so many countries that I have hated to leave because I have fallen in love. Fallen in love with the friendly faces from each of the kids, their silly laughs, and their hugs. I have fallen in love with people’s stories, the culture, and their way of life. I have fallen in love with the way that people have loved me and welcomed me into their country. Also I have fallen in love with the beauty of God creation in each and every country.
- Make you own fun
– When you are in the smallest town every imaginable in a country, where the only thing that is of entertainment is the pool hall with 50 year old men, and you only have solar power so movies and computers are not even working, you get pretty creative. Planning you wedding, card games, the floor is lava, creating a new language, interpretive dance, and headphone karaoke are all brilliant ideas for boredom.
- Don’t be afraid to dream
– This year will be a year of opportunities and during this time do not forget to dream. Figure out what you want to do with your life and dream big. Do not set small goals but imagine life to the fullest and that you could get anything you ever want out of it. While I was in Uganda my team was really talking about dreams, and plans for their life. This started a mess of thoughts, dreams, and plans that I want to accomplish for my life.
- Lean always on the Lord
– I do not say this lightly. You could do the whole race on your own ability, not opening a bible once. But you are going to be miserable. You will be worn out. Your emotional stability will not be well. Also you and the Lord will be fighting to figure out some things. So always lean on the Lord. Gain all that you need from Him and only Him. The days I go into ministry knowing that He will carry me through I feel so much better after than the days I am working on my own ability.
- Joy, Joy, Joy
– This would have to be my number one! I have had the word Joy spoken over me more than any other word in the English dictionary throughout this entire race. As much as this has happened I would love to tell you I have a secret that I am bursting at the seams to tell you about how to have as much joy as I do but I don’t honestly. The only thing that gets me through the day is that anything that I see as negative, or goes wrong, or frustrating is I know that there is a reason as to why the Lord has let it happen. Then I know that the Lord is good, and that all the plans He has are good so why should I be bothered by it. I also know that if anything goes wrong that the Lord has already covered it, the devil thinks He can play the same game but in reality we know he can’t and God has already won before the game was already started. So I just encourage you to look for joy in baby goats that are only a day old, the eyes of babies and children that literally can laugh at everything, and think about the things that make you happen when you are not joyful.
- Laughter is good medicine
– Honestly I will believe that I would not have finished the race if it wasn’t for laughter. Laughter with my team has been such a blessing when all you want to do is cry because you want to go home, or you day has been the worst. Coming home to a family that will make you laugh and refocus your emotions is something that I have always wanted and will continue to want. I pray I will continue to laugh through the hard things.
- Holidays don’t always look the same
When you are in December and all you want is to have egg nog by the fireplace listening to Christmas carols with you family you may be surprised by how much this might happen. I was blessed to have a paper fireplace (lol), created by my amazing team leader at the time, egg nog, and Christmas carols throughout the Christmas holiday. It almost felt like home because I had my team around me and they had become my family. But then there will be holidays that all you want is a hamburger and some fireworks and that is the least likely thing you are going to find where you are. So holidays might be celebrated differently as a team on the race and that’s okay. I have cried around holidays more often than not and that is to be expected. Again it is okay. Holidays are hard on the race but you can make them a memory that you will not forget if you just try.
- You can survive without comforts
– When you are stuck in the African bush bush, or sweating till you have not water content in your body in Cambodia it sometimes feels like you just need to be home in your air conditioner, with a nice comfy bed, and a jar of ice cream. I know I have been there and literally though the same thoughts. It’s real. It’s hard. But it can be done. You don’t have to have a daily chocolate bar, or coke, or a nice comfortable bed you can survive on little. Will it be the easiest thing? Well no. But you will learn to appreciate so much, and you will learn what you priorities in life really are.
- Enjoy the food and don’t worry about your weight
– Something I have heard others stress about is how much weight they are losing or gaining because of the food they are eating on the race. Yes I have lost 80 pounds on the race but that does not mean I am stressing over it. I am thankful for the food I am given and enjoy every taste of culture that I possibly can even though it might not be the best, most healthy thing for me. Enjoy the food, take a fourth piece of bread for breakfast in Africa, don’t worry if that is too much rice on your plate. Try and try to enjoy all that you can.
