Well, I’ve officially been home for over a week! So far it’s been really good and weird and restful all at the same time. As the race was coming to an end my plan was to head home to process and then figure out what my next step was…little did I know that this would quickly change for me. I always joke that God likes to show me what His plans are for me at the last minute possible, and the theory has held true! On our very last night in Peru my squad mentor asked me if I would like to alumni squad lead her next squad, and just an hour before we boarded our plane to go to the States I told her yes! IN OCTOBER I’M SQUAD LEADING!
So what is squad leading?
I am now part of the leadership team that’s main responsibility is to care for the growth and well being of a new squad, C-Squad. My role will be to lead and disciple a squad of 20 women as we travel to new countries together. This is actually the first ever all girl World Race squad, let’s go!!! I will be joining them in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Swaziland, Lesotho, and South Africa, and then they are on their own for the last 5 months. As I am traveling I will still be serving people that I meet, but these 20 women are now my main ministry. I will be serving them in ways that best supports the growth they need to be better Christ followers in their own ministry around the world. I learned so much on my race about how to serve others from the overflow of the love God gives us, and now I’m excited to help cultivate that loving community with this new group of girls! My co-squad leader is the lovely Ashley Soto, a fellow Texan!
Why did I decide to say yes?
Way back in January I had this gut feeling that I would squad lead. At the time it didn’t make sense because they had just announced who our raised up squad leaders would be. It felt random, but I couldn’t shake the idea. Once again in May I had the feeling I would squad lead, but I hadn’t been asked by anyone. This was really hard for me because it was basically the main time frame that people got asked to squad lead, so I missed it. I didn’t understand why I had such strong feelings about this but wasn’t seeing anything happen. I decided that I must have gotten it wrong, and it wasn’t supposed to happen. So I stopped thinking about it. Fast forward to the last day in Peru…when my squad mentor asked me to squad lead I had to take a walk to the beach. The opportunity caught me by surprise, but God quickly reminded me of all my “gut feelings” months ago. He had been preparing me for half a year! I knew in my heart that I had to do it, and felt extremely at peace about the decision. My own personal faith has grown and changed so much this past year, and a lot of that is due to my leadership team pouring into me as I served in each country. I definitely wouldn’t have been as pushed, stretched, and loved without their presence. I am so flippin’ excited that I get to do that now for C-Squad!
What are your next steps?
I will be home for a month before I head back out. I’m arriving in Georgia for training on September 30th and will launch for Guatemala on October 10th. I am trying to steward my time at home wisely since it is going to be short lived. So far I have been eating Chipotle and Chic-fil-a (I’ve already been to each 3 times), catching up on lost time with family and friends, running errands, resting, and praying for this new group of girls as they prepare for their journey.
Fundraising
Going back on the field means that I will be needing to fundraise again. I’ll be honest…fundraising is really hard for me and not my favorite thing to do, but I was able to see God move in huge ways through all of your generosity before. I was completely humbled. This time around I will need to raise a total of $6,500 and it will cover my lodging, travel, insurance, food, etc. (the same things it covered before). It does not cover any of the “adventure day” activities that you might have seen from my race, those types of things come from my own personal money. I ask that you all pray before deciding to support me, whether that’s with prayer, encouraging words, or finances. All are necessary and a greatly appreciated!
If you feel confident that you want to support me financially you can do so here or by clicking the “donate” link on the left. I’m hoping that I can find a few solid monthly supporters this time. Think about it, if 20 people decide to donate $50 per month I will easily be fully funded. Of course, I will gladly welcome one-time donations as well…and remember, every donation is tax deductible!
Once again, thank you for loving me so well from afar this past year! I can’t wait to see where this next journey takes me, and I hope all of you are along for the ride as well!
Much love,
Audrey
