I’m currently sitting alone in my hotel room in Florida, and it’s the first time I’ve been by myself in 11 months. As I sit here all I can think about is how thankful I am for the past year. I’m so thankful for my traveling church, my family, that I didn’t even know a year ago.
The squad boarding our first flight to India in October 2016
As I’m getting ready to head home there’s one question I’m dreading answering.
“So, how was your trip?”
I know I’m going to be asked this a million times, but take a moment to figure out how you would answer this.
Have any of you ever been on a trip for a week or two and come home with tons and tons of stories? Yeah, me too. I used to come home from camp every summer and talk my friends ears off about all the things I did and what I learned. I’m sure it was a bit much! Now imagine that trip, but multiply it by 46.
46 times the excitement. 46 times the crazy. 46 times the difficult. 46 times the lessons…46 weeks of living life out of my comfort zone and away from everything I’ve ever known before.
How do I describe that? I could go into detail about the crazy things I’ve eaten. Or maybe I will talk about all the funny moments caused by lack of communication with language barriers. I could also share about all the ways I’ve seen God at work. Even about how I’ve been so incredibly blessed and encouraged by brothers and sisters around the world. It’s been life changing. Understand that I want to tell you about my year, but I don’t know how. I’m not sure if you are asking to be polite or if you really want to know. I don’t know if you really want to know the surface level answer or the gritty details of it. The fun stuff or the hard stuff.
I’ve come to the realization that I don’t want to call it a trip. It’s just my life. I haven’t just been away from home for 11 months…I’ve had 11 different homes. I’ve been living missionally around the world, and I will continue to live missionally as I return to the States.
I’ve seen some hard things this year.
I’ve seen parents that don’t have money to send their kids to school in India
I’ve seen the pain behind the eyes of women stuck in prostitution in Nepal
I’ve seen the darkness that consumes the night life in Vietnam
I’ve seen the long lasting effects of a heartbreaking genocide in Cambodia
I’ve seen actions fueled by lust from the men in Botswana
I’ve seen the division caused by racism in South Africa
I’ve seen the desire to be loved by orphans in Swaziland
I’ve seen the problems with false faith and religion in Argentina
I’ve seen the problems from young adults feeling lost and misunderstood in Chile (which looks all too familiar to the States)
I’ve seen men and women in the jungle of Bolivia that worry their country has forgotten about them
I’ve seen the pain and worry in the faces of Venezuelan refugees traveling through Ecuador
I’ve also seen a lot of really amazing things this year.
I’ve seen the fruit of what a strong Christian community can do in the dominating Hindu culture of India
I’ve seen the passion of the rapidly growing church in Nepal
I’ve learned about childlike faith from the children in Vietnam
I’ve seen a country on the rise within the sweet hearts of my Cambodian friends
I’ve seen a passion for evangelism on college campuses in Botswana
I’ve seen the fruit of hard work and a life full of joy in South Africa
I’ve experienced how just holding a child’s hand can make a difference in Swaziland
I’ve experienced the joy in fellowship with young adults in Argentina
I’ve been humbled by the hospitality and love from the families in Chile
I’ve learned about living simply and trusting completely in faith from the village in Bolivia
I’ve felt loved and encouraged by the growing church in Ecuador
This past year has caused me to see things I used to choose to ignore. It’s taught me beautiful and ugly things about myself. It’s been eye opening. It’s been life altering.
So, you might be wondering what the heck to even say when you see me. I’m wondering the same thing! I want to know about your life! How do I ask you to sum up your whole year as well? The biggest advice I’ve been given is to pray for grace. For me to have grace with you, and I’m asking for you to have grace with me as well. Because neither of us know the perfect thing to say!
So in effort to solve a little bit of the awkwardness, I’m going to include a few things from each month that you can ask me about. Really this is just if you find yourself wanting to know specifics, but feel free to ask whatever you want! Just be ready for a story or a long winded answer-ha!
India
-TCS boys
-our love for grapefruits
-Halloween
-a shift of my mindset involving ministry
-crazy monkey in a cage
Nepal
-cabin restaurant girls
-our water going out for a week
-Sabbath shalom on Fridays
-our trip to Pokhara
-the monkey temple
Vietnam
-being in a closed country
-the lack of communication
-dance parties on the roof
-police asking about us at the Christmas Eve service
-secret Santa
-how God worked miracles with fundraising
-revelations I had about intimacy with God
Cambodia
-boys from Switzerland
-eating numerous weird things
-learning about the history with the genocide
-Angkor Wat
-training for a half marathon
-our high school students
-how my team fought for each other
Botswana
-our experience arriving in the bus station
-strikes on the college campus
-team day of prayer
-adventure to Victoria Falls
South Africa
-our beautiful hosts and how I related to them
-the monkey dance
-being a camp counselor again
-all the fun adventure things (sand boarding, surfing, bungee jumping)
-the Imagine conference
-going on a safari
-running a half marathon
Swaziland
-team leading and team changes
-care points
-trying to build a green house
-serving with my parents at PVT
-soccer games
-witnessing some of the corruption with the government
-getting chased by an elephant
Argentina
-working with YWAM
-being back on a high ropes course
-seeing the difference of religion vs relationship
-fighting for my new team
Chile
-how amazing the families were to us
-my Chilean abuelos
-coffee and tea ministry
-having 2 people join our team for an exposure trip
-losing a member of our team
-soccer games and becoming a bandwagon fan
-how hard the World Race was for me at this time
Bolivia
-the crazy elevation in La Paz
-hiking a total of 64 miles in the Amazon
-the village of Mojos
-how different ministry looked this month
-eating an obscene amount of oranges
-celebrating my birthday in the jungle
-our bathing and bathroom situation for the month
-trying to communicate with all the children that speak in Quechua
-Sandra, a 9 year old with cerebral palsy
Ecuador
-experiencing a route change while the rest of the squad was in Peru
-crazy long travel days
-how God perfectly demonstrated how powerful the body of Christ is through a Venezuelan family
-doing over 30 house visits as a team
-understanding the fruit that comes from being on a healthy team
-daily asking the Lord for strength during our long days
-adventures to Puerto Lopez and Banos
These are just a few of the stories I have from the past year. There’s been countless stories that will continue to surface over time, maybe even months or years down the road, as I see something that reminds me of the memories I have.
The squad (give or take a few members) as we boarded our final flight to the States
It’s only because of y’all that this whole year has been possible, and I want to say THANK YOU! I can’t wait to see you guys. Know that it’s probably going to be awkward. Get rid of any expectations of how it’ll go. Walk with grace! (These are the things I keep telling myself)
The people in the second picture aren’t the same as the group in the first. We have all had these life changing experiences together. After 16 flights, 37 buses, and a countless number of taxis and tuktuks, N-Squad is home!
I’m sure some of you are wondering what I’m doing next after this wild year, and up until a few days ago I was wondering the same thing! Stay tuned for another blog VERY SOON with updates and announcements about what I’m doing next! It’s exciting!!!
