Today I miss my family! You may initially think by family I mean my mom, dad, grandma, sister, close friends at home, etc… While I do miss those people more and more everyday I get closer to seeing them, in this case I refer to my team Zion family. These teammates include Casey, Beth, Gabrielle, and myself. This month we are a mix of several teams in various locations, and I happen to be without any team Zion members. (FYI, we changed our team name to the Phoenix…you know rising out of the ashes to become something great!)
Spending a year with these people has caused our hearts to fuse together. They each hold portions of my journey that no one else will ever be able to understand outside the Zion/Phoenix family. We have been through the fire together. They have seen my heart and life wide open and vulnerable. We have seen the good, bad, ugly, and refinement up close and personal. Not until these last two weeks as I have been apart from them did I realize how intricately our hearts are woven together.
We know exactly when each other needs or does not need something. We know when not to joke, push buttons, converse, give advice, rush, etc… In addition we know exactly when to speak truth, give encouragement, kick each other in the rear, speak our mind, challenge to seek the Lord, remind of past convictions, etc… We know exactly how to be community for one another. I trust these people with my whole life. I trust them with my heart, my past, my convictions, my struggles and victories, my pains and joys, with everything I consider important.
Casey is more than a brother. He listens intently to every word that comes out of my mouth and thinks intensely before responding. His response is always heartfelt and wise. Although I want him to get to the point more quickly sometimes, I appreciate the way he desires to communicate each thought, its root, and possible solution. His philosophical mind has challenged me to slow down a bit and examine life’s injustices and find truth. Casey is someone who you feel his love simply by his desire to know you. The Lord is going to give him the desires he has deep down and those that he is yet to know the Lord wants to give him.
Beth is my wise sister. She feels things in a deep way that you might never expect her to do. Her heart for each of us is evident in her daily encouragement and desire to serve. She is someone who you watch and know the Lord will give HIS very best and nothing less because she deserves it and He desires to show His love to her as she does for those around her. This year I have had a front row seat as the Lord dropped a vision and promise into her lap. She has taught me the importance of people knowing you appreciate, love, and desire to know them done to every detail.
Gabrielle is truly my angel. She is the one I talk to for hours, enjoy dance parties with, and understands all of me. She has shown me unconditional love like I have only ever experienced from my own mother. Her patience and holy impatience with me has showed me God’s heart. While grace covers everything there is a time to not squander the grace offered. When you begin to hurt someone’s heart it is time to stop, examine, and change yourself. Gabrielle and I have done this with one another all year. I have had the privilege of watching God take her dreams, refine them, and create something that will be 100 times better than she could have ever created. Thinking about how God has used her to refine me brings tears to my eyes.
I love you guys! Hope you can find internet wherever you might be in Central America to read my tribute. Thanks for impacting my life in such a dramatic way, for being patient as the Lord refines me, and for being 100% yourselves. Can’t wait for our last two weeks as a team. It is going to be incredible. Miss you like I never imagined possible, but…see you soon!
