Eight and a half months leading up to this 10 day training camp, where I would meet the 42 strangers who I would soon be traveling the world with, to share the Gospel. I blinked, and then it was time to pack everything I would need for 10 days in a backpack (that looks like a huge burrito when wearing it) and a daypack (that I would wear on the front of me). I arrived in Gainesville, Ga on June 7 not knowing what to expect, but the fear and anxiety about not knowing many people but meeting so many people at once, began to wash over me as I pulled down a long drive and into a gravel parking lot. I parked my car and looked next to me, and there parked beside me was my cross fit friend, Alexis, who I had met in Atlanta just a few months before this. In that moment, I took a deep breath and declared it was going to be a good 10 days, because He is a good, good Father and He cares about the desires of our heart, even when they seem so silly.
And man oh man was it a good 10 days! Training Camp was amazing and uncomfortable. It stretched me in so many ways, taught me incredible things about myself, my teammates, and about Jesus! There were really hard days and super great days, and there were days that were rough and days that were filled with so much fun and joy. But most importantly, the Name above of all Names was glorified and lifted high all 10 days of training camp and that’s what made every single day incredible.
SO many things happened while at training camp and I would LOVE to meet up with anyone that would be willing to listen, and tell you everything that happened over a cup of coffee or a meal, but for the sake of keeping this post to a fairly reasonable length, I wanted to create a bullet point list of the highlighted things from Training Camp:
- Bringing 43 people together sounded crazy, but resulted in beautiful Kingdom work being made
- My whole squad survived the 2.2 mile fitness test hike with our backpacks
- We ate crickets for breakfast and they taste like sunflower seeds
- We ate food from all over the world
- We ate with our hands 85% of the time
- Sharing your guilt and shame results in freedom and joy like never before
- Porta potties are HOT and make the outside air feel as cool as a refrigerator
- Community style sleeping isn’t that bad when you love your squad
- We can survive making a fire, cooking our dinner, setting up shelter with tarps and ropes, and sleeping through the night as a squad
- Communication, community, and vulnerability are all good things
- Sleeping in a simulated airport terminal was my favorite sleeping scenario because air conditioning
- Listening to Holy Spirit’s voice is crucial
- Rest is something we NEED
- Dancing is so out of my comfort zone and we did a lot of it
- 170+ people sang me “Happy Birthday” at breakfast the morning of my birthday
- The Lord knows way better than I do, so I should stop arguing with Him and just trust Him
- No matter what, every situation is going to work out exactly how God intended it to
- Praying over/for every little thing is changing my heart daily
- Worshipping with 170+ people is a beautiful, beautiful sound
- Bucket showers = life changing when you only get 3 of them
- It’s in the uncomfortable when I hear God’s voice the loudest
- I AM SO EXCITED FOR LAUNCH IN 43 DAYS
There is SO much more that I would love to share and so many stories to tell, so please feel free to let me know if you would like to meet to hear more about Training Camp!
**Also, another route change has been made!!**
We are going to MYANMAR instead of LAOS!!! Woohoo!
Stay tuned for another blog post where I’ll be introducing my team that I will be doing ministry with for the first couple of months of the World Race!
THANK YOU to everyone who was/is praying for me! Your prayers were heard during training camp and are still being felt as I have transitioned back home.
xoxo, Madison
