Hello everyone! It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted a blog (oops!) but I wanted to update y’all on a few things.
This week I will be going to training camp and this blows my mind! I feel like I have been in the same season of waiting and preparing for quite a while now, and this week I will get to meet me entire squad for the first time. I have been talking to these 55 strangers who are quickly becoming family for about half a year now. It’s going to be so surreal to see them in person after building friendships via group chat and social media. For those of you that haven’t seen my blog Here’s the Skinny, you should go check it out so you understand what I’m talking about.
On Wednesday (August 10th) I will arrive in Gainesville, Georgia for training camp. We will be spending 10 days camping out while we train, prepare, and work on team building with our squad. Apparently, it’s supposed to rain for the majority of the time we are there…should make it interesting! I do not know everything that we will be doing at training camp, but that’s part of training in itself: we have to learn to adapt to situations on the fly!
There is so much unknown about this mission trip in October. Where will I sleep? Will I be able to answer tough questions that I may get asked? Who is going to become my new family while I’m gone? Will I find that close person I can trust and lean on? What will I miss out on at home while I’m gone? Am I going to get sick from eating strange foods? How will I cope with missing family and friends? And after this life-changing year, what will I do when I get back? I don’t know the answers to these questions, and that’s scary.
One analogy that can be made to our faith, and even this mission trip, is the idea of cliff jumping. For those of you that know me, you know that I love adventuring and anything that involves an adrenaline rush. That’s what makes this analogy perfect!
Just a few days ago I was able to go cliff jumping (don’t worry mom, the lake was super deep). We started on some lower cliffs that weren’t very threatening. I was in my element. After a while someone asked if we had jumped off the really high cliff yet, and of course I was immediately intrigued.
We ventured down the shore line until we found a crowd of people, this was it! This cliff was probably double the height we had been jumping off already, and I was definitely intimidated. I started to feel a knot in my stomach, and wondered if I had the courage to jump off. I watched several people jump off and have a great time, and knew that I had to do it! I started reasoning with myself to calm my nerves — So many people have already jumped and are completely fine. The water is so deep, there’s no chance you can hit anything. It’ll be over before you know it. Don’t look down, just jump! — and finally, I did it! It was so great that I was able to convince my friend to do it as well. I even had to go back for another jump!
This trip is like cliff jumping. I have so many unanswered questions about what this next year holds for me. So now I have been reasoning with myself to calm my nerves — You have had this on your heart for the last 4 years, and it’s time. I am exactly where I’m supposed to be right now, God will provide. God will use me to further His kingdom. I have a great support group within my friends/family at home and my family I will be traveling with. Yes I will miss big life events at home, but I’m also going to be having a life-altering year. If God is for me, then who could stop me? It’s going to fly by and will be over before you know it. Don’t look back, just go! — and so I go!
Our faith is like cliff jumping. We can choose to continue making decisions that are comfortable and in our element (like the small cliffs) or we can go for the bigger and life changing decisions (like those big scary cliffs). We have to do things everyday to stretch our faith, and that’s scary. We have to trust that God is like the water at the end of the cliff, and He is waiting to catch us as we fall. After you make those scary decisions and come out okay on the other side you might even encourage your friends to do the same.
Fundraising update!
After my recent garage sale I am now sitting right around 54% funded. I am also less than $1,000 away from hitting the second goal of $10,000! Thank you so much for all the love and support!
