Never before have I had the opportunity to really get to know a group of individuals without meeting them face to face first. And now, here I am, thrown in among 60 (!!!) or more other twenty-somethings that I will have the privilege of boarding a plane to India with come October. I know what they look like, but I do not know the sound of their voice. I know bits and pieces about them, but I do not yet know whether they snort when they laugh or find yawns contagious (wait, doesn’t everybody?). I haven’t met them yet, and still, they’ve taught me so much.
For starters, let me explain the World Race jargon: My squad (we’re the N squad!) is the entire group of us that applied and were accepted to the same route. We’ll be doing some big travel days together as well as debriefing, but within each country we’ll be splitting up into teams of about 6-7 people who we’ll do day-to-day life with. Thanks to smartphones and social media, the entire squad has been communicating via a Facebook group as well as a huge group message thread (which has seriously been the biggest blessing!) From all of this chit chat, which has included packing questions, prayer requests, theological discussions, corny jokes, life stories, and various YouTube videos/Vines/GIFs/Bitmojis, here are a few of the things I’ve learned about my new family:
They’re REAL.
Alright, stick with me here. For some reason, when I signed up for this crazy thing, I had visions of me being the only “normal” one (whatever that means). The reality is, I’m a girl that loves Jesus. But I also love some songs with some inappropriate lyrics, and I let a cuss word slip out sometimes, and I wear a bikini to the beach, and I love a good huckleberry margarita. And somehow I thought these things might cause me to be the black sheep among a group of people that otherwise were all homeschooled and played the violin and had never held hands with a boy or girl or had a sip of alcohol and all had the Bible memorized and could pull scripture references out of thin air (not that there’s anything wrong with these things—I hope you see the point I’m trying to make.) Instead, what I’ve found is a whole bunch of young people just like me. People that are sinners, and struggle with real things like addiction and jealousy and selfishness. They don’t know the Bible cover to cover and they don’t always say the right thing. They have lived messy lives too and still have doubts every day about “God’s Will” and what that looks like for their lives. Whenever I think to myself that I’m not “good enough” to go overseas and serve God & His people for 11 months, I think about these beautiful souls that I’m going with and that they’re not “good enough” either. None of us ever will be. I’m so thankful for these friends that are real, not perfect.
They love well.
I’ve been talking to some of the people on my squad for about seven months. Most of them, less than that. In that seven-months-or-less, many have endured some hard things. The heartbreaking loss of family members. Medical mysteries & unanswered prayers. Broken relationships. Lost jobs. And through it all, every time, with every new hurt, my N squad has rallied for them. Fought for them. Loved. Whether it be flowers sent to their doorstep, a phone call to check in, or simply the outpouring of words and messages and prayers to help lift them from their darkness, I have consistently been so in awe of the way everyone already loves each other so well. I have seen it personally, too, after just recently cracking myself open to my new family and allowing them to hear about the desperately hurting pieces of myself and the things that cause me to lose sleep at night. And these people don’t have to care. They don’t know me yet, really. It would be so easy and acceptable for all of them to tell me they’re praying for me and maybe they really would once or twice. Instead, teammates reached out with so much tenderness and compassion telling me their stories, that they understood and cared for me and felt what I was feeling. They prayed for me and with me, and checked in again & again because they considered me a sister as soon as they saw my name next to theirs on our squad list. I am learning about love from people I haven’t met yet and can only pray that I can show them that same selfless love in return.
They’re in this for the right reasons.
Yeah, oftentimes our conversations drift to how bad we want to see Machu Piccu while we’re in Peru, or “I’ll absolutely die if I don’t see an African elephant in Botswana” (this sentence may have came from me). But so much more often than talking about the “bucket list items” to be crossed off, they’re talking about how their heart breaks for the trafficking that goes on in Cambodia, and that we need to be praying for and learning about that place long before we ever set foot there. Or they’re talking about how cool it is following other current World Racer’s blogs, and how they’re so excited to see how God is working through them and they wonder what incredible things He will use us for on the field. We all get a little sidetracked sometimes and sucked into the adventure of it all, but I have seen at the heart of it that these people are leaving behind their families, their jobs, their lives, for 11 months because they want to be the hands and feet of Jesus. They want to be wrecked over the brokenness of the world and help restore it, just a little bit, by shining a light in some dark places. When I’m the one to get distracted by the minor details of what clothes to bring or, “is Indian food going to burn my mouth off?,” there’s usually someone to remind me of why we go.
It’s about the time where some members of the squad are choosing to defer to a later route due to financial or personal reasons. It’s hard, getting to know people so well and dreaming about this journey with them only to learn that the Lord has different plans. But like I said, and regardless of which squad they end up on—we’re family now, as cliche as it is, and there’s no changing that. For my whole N squad, past, present, and future, thank you for the lessons you teach me every day. Thank you for being real, and raw, and loving the way that Jesus loves. I can’t wait to live this life with you.
Fundraising Update:
Thanks to so many generous people, I’ve raised $12,266! I am so incredibly humbled and grateful. I still have to raise $4,695, and I’d love to have this money raised by the time I leave on October 1st. I am making and selling artwork as one way to raise money, check it out here! It’s nothing special, but it’s fun for me and a great way for you to support me if you choose. If you don’t see something you like, I’d be happy to talk to you about making something custom for you.
If you think you’ve donated and haven’t received a thank you from me, it might mean that your donation didn’t go through—some other racers have had this problem in the past and I just want to be sure that everything is being processed. Please let me know if you think this could be the case!
I would LOVE to gain some monthly supporters! I currently only have one couple that supports me on a monthly basis, and while I’m so thankful for my one-time donors, I know that sometimes it can be easier to give a smaller amount every month—so just know that that’s an option and it can be set up quickly and easily. Again, THANK YOU to everyone who has supported me—I couldn’t be on this journey without you.
