Hello to all my supporters, family, friends, and anyone else who may read this blog! On Sunday night I arrived back in Seattle after 11 days in Georgia preparing for the World Race. At camp we attended training sessions, ate food from different countries while following their customs, played games as a squad, and practiced ministry scenarios as a team.
In an effort to prepare us for the field, AIM had port-a-potties available, and we camped in our tents as a squad the whole week, except for the night we spent in an “airport.” We took bucket showers with cold water from the hose, and if you were lucky you got the bucket and measuring cup that weren’t cracked. There were 6 stalls and about 200 girls at camp, so the lines were often very long (I waited an hour one time), and the thought of walking across camp, filling up a bucket, and shivering as you tried to keep the shower curtain closed while also keeping an eye on the spider in the corner of the stall was enough to make you just wait to shower at home (baby wipe showers are now a thing). I tried to help out my seatmates on my flights home by showering the night before we left, but my travel outfit ended up being the denim shorts and t-shirt I slept in the previous night, so with my smelly hair and dirty backpack I’m sure everyone in the airport knew I was going home to Seattle.
Besides the fact that we all smelled awful, we had a great time of bonding, and we commiserated over our uncomfortable living situation. Different than previous training camps, we got out team assignments on the first day of camp. This change allowed us to meet our teammates on day 1, and spend time with them knowing they will be the people we spend 9 months with. I had so much fun getting to know these guys, and we have still barely scratched the surface of each other’s lives. Each of my teammates has a fantastic sense of humor and a heart for God. We had a great time laughing together, as well as sharing our thoughts on the sessions, and where we are at in our relationships with God. We even came in second place in the squad dance battle, so I think we should add “dance team” to our team ministry bio. I’ll write a blog later introducing my team, so for now here is the only group picture we got. It was really stormy that night, and we were all soaking wet from the rain (and baptisms!), but at least we remembered! From left to right it’s Luke, Kendra, Casey, me, Shea, Hunter, and Kassie.
Everyday we had multiple training sessions where we learned how to write sermons, put on retreats for compromised women, and entertain 45+ Chinese children for a couple hours with only minutes to prepare. Through these scenarios we grew closer as a team, and we learned how we would respond in practical ministry settings. When we weren’t in a ministry training session, we were in sessions focused on our personal growth and spiritual maturity. After each speaker we would debrief as a team, and at the end of the week 4 members of my team (myself included!) got baptized!
This week was so challenging to my faith and my identity in Christ, there is no way I could describe everything that happened in one blog post, but I know I have come home a new person. I experienced the Holy Spirit like I never have before, and having my team around me to experience it made me even more excited for what is to come in the next year of our lives. I am ready to grow and be pushed out of my comfort zone alongside these guys, continue to pray for team bonding, spiritual awakening and growth, and fundraising, as we prepare to launch in 50 days!
If you want to hear more about training camp and how I am preparing to leave, talk to me! You can find me through the contact page on this blog 🙂
