1 Plate 8 Hands
pt1.
Imagine this. Walking onto a plane by yourself for the first time. You know your destination but the whole concept of what you are doing is completely foreign. You have to meet at least 50 strangers that some way, somehow are going to become your family.
I step off the plane and place my feet on Georgia ground. After a clunky hot mess of finding my bags I make my way to one of those weird conveyor belt thingies for humans, that’s when I meet my first squad mate. We hug like we have known each other for our whole lives. It was weird, but comforting.
That night a few more of us show up at her apartment. I felt overwhelmed and numb, maybe it was the fact that I hadn’t slept in 40 hours… Which resulted in me sleeping everywhere I could lay my head. Or maybe it was me abandoning any expectations of what to expect. Whatever it was I think we all were in the idea of “tomorrow” piercing through our thoughts with these unknown feelings of disbelief. Are we really doing this?
< I was actually sleeping
Silent, with an excessively fast beating heart, we enter the final stretch of freedom as we pass the World Race sign. I can see that just above the hill are my next 10 days. People are cheering and welcoming us in but all I could process was, “I think I’m going to puke.” Which I accidentally word vomited out loud and everyone laughed, but I wasn’t kidding.
As we entered through The World Race Training Camp gates I looked back and thought, “maybe it’s not to late, maybe I can jump out of the trunk and start running.”
Then God got a hold of me so fast I couldn’t even finish my thought. He said, “I have called you here” and in that moment I felt an abundance of peace. I knew my life was no longer going to be the same. I’m doing this. Like, really doing this. 11 months 11 different countries. Here we go Jesus, you better take the wheel.
We were directed to set up our tents for the night. I hated setting up my tent, which we had to do almost every single day. I just want to let you guys know how fast we became a strong community. The second night I found a very generous roommate, who became one of my best friends, and all I had to do was share my warmth. This payment method apparently worked because I only had to set up my tent once throughout the duration of camp. Such amazing people. Thank you Jesus!
After setting up my tent I introduced myself to everyone and we then headed to our first ever worship/session night together. I could feel it in my spirit that something was so special about this group. I looked around and I saw strangers who I already knew. As we worshiped together it was so beautiful and powerful.
That night as we all made our way back to our tents all I could hear was laughter amongst us. It filled the night. 41 people who have never met entered the night with joy. I looked around with a gleaming smile on my face and said to God, “This is my squad. These are my people, thank you Abba.”
Let me set something straight… Georgia is a mirage for all you Michiganders. IT IS SO COLD IN THE MORNING. I’m pretty positive heat does not exist in a Georgia morning, which is a complete shock to me. I had to pray for warmth in my body because I kid you not I could feel my blood begin to freeze and I was not trying to be Queen Elsa.
After we woke up it was time to eat. 8 people sat at a table and we had 1 plate of food that we would have to share. It’s sounds invasive, but I secretly loved it. We all looked at each other and laughed. It was like second nature to us. We started portioning and then unquestionably dug in. Something I learned that day is when you are sharing food with 8 people it means way less portions, which leads to way more hunger, which then led me to thanking the lord I brought a secret stash of granola bars.
< Sharing at its finest.
By the tenth day with each other it didn’t even matter if I smelt like fried BO, these people shared everything they had (including deodorant), but they also still loved to hug! Which is true friendship. In 10 days God taught me a lot, but most importantly he taught me something I thought I already knew. God wrecked my thought of what community was. Community is so much more important than I initially thought. Whether it’s praying, sharing food, laughing , or crying God takes delight in his community, in his people seeking Him together in unity. I love my Squad. I love my Team. I love my new family.
Who would have thought that 1 plate and 8 hands would lead to family.
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!”
??Psalm? ?133:1? ?ESV
< MEET A SQUAD!
