While my Facebook and Instagram pictures may prove otherwise, it has not just been beaches and castles for us here on the World Race. While I have been extremely blessed to be able to experience some free time and travel with incredible views, it has also been a lot of hard work these last couple of weeks here in Albania. The month started off with team debrief, which is a time to refocus, reconnect, and re-evaluate our time on the World Race thus far. The most memorable night was our night of vulnerability. Our leaders challenged us to open up with our squad and share anything from our past or present that we have been holding on to or that we have already found freedom in. This led to a three night series of truly opening up with one another, praying for one another, and becoming free of past sins and chains that have been weighing us down for so long. It showed me what true Christian community is supposed to be about. It’s not about being perfect, it’s not about living one way and hiding the “bad” parts of your life, it’s not about putting up a front and acting like we have our lives all together. What Christian community is supposed to be about is hearing one another’s disgusting, ugly mess and diving in right alongside them with your own mess to push each other closer to Christ.
After debrief was our first week of camp here at Lightforce. We had a group of Peace Corp volunteers come in with a group of about 80 Albanian teenagers. Our boss here, George, who runs the camp has been teaching us a ton of discipline and hard work while at Lightforce. We are in a compound with archery, rock climbing, an obstacle course, pool, and billiard room. While assigning duties for our squad, of course I wanted to be on the sports or medical team, maybe even gardening, but I somehow wound up on kitchen duty…for the whole month. “Funny, God!”, is what I thought to myself. Preparing food and cleaning up after almost 200 people for three meals a day sounds great! But it really did. Even though it was not necessarily my first choice, He really has already taught me so much even in this last week.
The main thing He taught me this past week was how to have undefinable joy. One thing George spoke to us about was how people of the world today oftentimes become worried if they are not sad enough. Depression and anxiety has become so widespread that it is so hard sometimes to even find joy. But that’s what can be different when we have Jesus in our hearts. When you are up and going from 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. every night and on your only break of the day you are asked to help out with more physical labor, choose joy. When you work all day in a HOT kitchen with no air conditioning to cook a meal for 80 kids and all they can do is ask for obscure requests to get out of eating the food you helped prepare, choose joy. When you miss out on fun evening activities because you have to stay and help clean up the kitchen and wash dishes after dinner, choose joy. I learned that I don’t have a right to anything. I came on this race to serve and love and I had to have a little slap in the face from Jesus. Even if it is my time to have off, I am here to help serve the staff of Lightforce and my squadmates. My wants and desires should not be first and with the right attitude, any “crappy” situation can be a joyous one.
Whether you choose to be happy or sad will not change your situation, so why not choose the latter? So I will choose this month to embrace the busy days, squatty potties, and constant smell of pig manure. I mean, I get to serve the Lord every day! It can’t get much better than that! Maybe you too should try this just for one week. Wake up each day and choose joy. Even though the world, our culture, and your situation may be telling you otherwise, it is possible to find God’s blessings in every situation.
Please continue to pray for our squad as we continue to work two more camps coming through this month. We will have a group from an Albanian Baptist Church coming in tomorrow and another at the end of the month. Pray that we take advantage of the remainder of this all squad month and continue to strengthen relationships between one another. Only two more weeks in Lezhe, Albania and I want to experience all the God has for me here. Until next time!
