Lately, I feel like God is pricking my heart concerning friendship. Honestly, one major draw of the World Race, for me, was the opportunity to bond with strong, God loving, hearts-for-service, radical people – definitely people I anticipate will be way more God-versed, learned and practiced than me. I crave nights of debriefing after a day filled with ministry; I want people to know me as well as I know myself, who can see when I a stumbling and have the courage and enough love for me to set me straight, who encourage my daily walk with God, who engage in conversations of faith with me, who challenge and develop my Christian mind. Walking into World Race Training Camp, I had every expectation of falling instantly in love with whatever team I was placed on, meshing with people from all over North America, of different denominational backgrounds but one common goal in mind. What I didn’t expect was being placed on a team of only women!
Sometimes I think when I get to Heaven I will pull a Ricky Ricardo. Remember how on I Love Lucy, when Ricky would come home after Lucy had done something crazy? He would always enter the apartment and yell, “Lucy…. You got some ‘splaining to do!” There are so many times when I want to say, “God…. You got some ‘splaining to do!” but as my grandma told me, God doesn’t have to ‘splain anything. Luckily for us, His plans always seem to reveal themselves in time.
When told I would be on an all-woman team, I was hurt. Hadn’t our trainers heard me? I respond so much better to dudes. I get along with guys. I’m the girl who would willingly plays ANY sport, likes to spend the day mudding or fishing, can change my own tire or oil, and keeps my emotions in check! I’ve got a guy mindset in a lot of ways. I wanted a Christian brother to walk with me along the Race, allowing me to observe his transformation with God, pick his brain about what Godly men are after in a mate, and learn some awesome technical/survival skills from. That whole protection aspect isn’t a bad sell either. I tend to find large groups of women… annoying. I NEVER wanted to be part of sorority life, because stereotypical though it may be, I wanted nothing as little drama as possible in my life. Watch one episode of the Bachelor and you pretty well understand how catty, petty, conniving and jealous women can be. And don’t even get me started on mood-swings, hot flashes, irritability… etc. I’m a woman, after all. I know from experience. But let’s face it; God knows what He is doing.
I need to learn to be more of a girl. Many people at Training Camp spoke into me concerning my strength, stability and steadfastness. One in particular, however, noted how I could be much more strong for my friends and loved ones if I would willingly stop trying to take on the entire world and instead turn over my load to God. They were right. Moreso, I know that I need to learn to appreciate my Christian sisters more and especially learn to note the strength found in Godly women!
The scenario is almost symbolic. Up to this point in my life, God has been perfect in providing a group of Best Friends whom I feel so blessed to call mine. He’s equipped me with five outstanding women whom I rely on incessantly to help get me through everyday, and now He has equipped me with five more outstanding women that will walk with me on the mission field. It’s such a neat feeling to know that my five besties will be at home praying for me, still being their steadfast selves, and my five teammates will be seeing the product of those prayers first hand! I’m so excited to see how God meshes these two groups of powerful women in my life!
So I want to offer thanks to God for the best friends He’s given me, who’ve helped mold and shape me to this point of willingness and desire for missions. Each will be a significant part of my prayer team here at home!
Charlee: I credit FFA with bringing me most of my friendships, and this one is no exception. She is the epitome of strength in womanhood. She consistently proves to me that God is not ONLY found in a building. We've had more adventures that I could ever recount and I wouldn't trade a single one! I'm so blessed to have someone who is always looking out for me, who would drop everything in a flash if I needed her, who challenges me to do more and think bigger, and who at the end of everyday no matter how badly I might mess up, never judges and never stops caring. 🙂
Celeste: Another FFA strike-up, we also spent five pretty awesome weeks together in Government Sponsored Procreation camp (aka Governor's Scholar Program.) We have just jived from the get-go. We may not talk daily, but this woman is always there when I need her, be it in a time of tragedy, when I just want to hang out or even when I'm in need of a great recipe! It was a high honor for me to be a bridesmaid in her wedding! I'm so happy that she married a man who loves God, loves her, and now loves their 4-month old daughter!!! (I'm kind of goo-goo for the kid, as well!) Really glad to have this woman on my side!
Heather: We've been buds since elementary school, when we were placed on the same basketball team! Since then it's been a whirlwind of sports, sleepovers, trips, boys, dances, graduation, college, first jobs, etc. We've just stuck it out. She probably knows me as well as anyone; she's been around for almost every major aspect of my life! She has taught me what it means to stand by someone no matter what, to commit to something or someone when it/they matter enough! She's one of the hardest workers I know and I learn from her everyday!
Paige: Literally my longest-lasting best friend, we've been buds since she was born (and I was just a little over a year old.) One of my earliest memories is pushing her around the Nashville Zoo in her stroller! We happen to be cousins, so we understand one another's quirks, loves, hates, etc. and typically just blame them all on the bloodline. My house is hers and vice versa; she's been the closest thing to a sister I had growing up, and I wouldn't trade one silly argument or one ridiculous cry for all the great fun we've managed to squeeze in along the way! This girl is going to change the world! I stand in awe of her love for people!!
Megan: We've honestly had about every aspect of best friendship that you can fit in! We started as rivals in sports, and kind of rivals in FFA. Then we went to college buddies, then FFA teammates, then roommates, then collegues, and now, we're really just great friends! I can tell her anything and recieve NO judgement, and she knows she's got the same priviledge. This girl just cares, plain and simple. She is a true example of love without expectation of anything in return, and I adore that quality!!!
And now I want to thank God for (and introduce you to) my team for the next 11 months! We chose the team name The Dunamisses; Dunamis is the Greek word for Power and for whatever reason, the word POWER kept cropping up whenever we would talk about our team or what we were feeling in regards to being a band of all women (hence the “misses” part.) Trust me, I can already tell God will use this group to do amazing things over the next year! I can’t wait to be a part of it.
L to R: Becky, Karen, Monica, Liz, Ashlee and Laura
I’ve never doubted that people come into our lives for reasons. God plants people along our day-to-day to help us grow and develop however He sees fit. I think the people He has given me to this point have done a terrific job with their task of helping me, and I have no doubt that He will do just the same with these new relationships! Life already great, and it can only get better!
Be Blessed,
Ashlee
