1. You’re not as awesome as you think you are. Your inflated ego will crumble in the face of community living. Embrace it. Find the true you.
2. Baboons will steal any candy they see in your backpack. And it will be absolutely terrifying.
3. Bug spray will eat through the bottom of a tent. No matter how many ants have invaded it, don’t spray it.
4. Life is what you make it. You could wake up every day and go through the motions. You could be grumpy or hold grudges. Or you can choose joy. You can delight yourself in what God has done to get you to where you are RIGHT NOW, take a deep breath, and enjoy the heck out of every moment.
5. Getting lice sucks. But holding and loving on children whose heads are crawling with it without a second thought – 100% worth it.
6. Be adventurous. Take the long walk home. Blindly pick a menu option. Strike up a conversation with a stranger on a bus. Explore forests and castles and abandoned buildings.
7. The world desperately needs Jesus. Share Him at all costs.
8. Living in intentional Christian community is one of the most stretching, difficult, frustrating and absolutely beautiful experiences you can ever have.
9. If your towel gets stolen off the line in Mozambique, great stand-ins for the following four months include a pillow case, an african shetenja (large piece of fabric used as a wrap around skirt), a tiny washcloth from Chelsea Greenwood, a free pile shirt, and if you’re in Southeast Asia, you don’t even bother to dry off because you’re already sweating at that point anyway.
10. Suffering is one of the most fruitful and shaping ministries you can ever experience. If you look heavenward when you’re in the valley, you will see the mercy, grace, power and deep love of Jesus in ways you’ll never see Him otherwise.
11. God is so faithful. Always and everywhere. He is working and moving and delighted to entrust grand adventures and brave missions to us.
12. A 6 foot tall woman is tall in America. Overseas, I may as well be a Ginger-haired Godzilla. I’m a spectacle, and I learned to embrace that very early on in the trip. So glad I did!
13. Don’t externalize or over-demonize ALL the bad stuff going on in your life. Take responsibility for the sin in your life. Humbly always remember your need for a Redeemer.
14. Cheese is cheap only in America. Enjoy it folks.
15. If you have a chance to bungee jump in your lifetime, do it. If it’s in front of one of the seven natural wonders of the world, even better.
16. God’s fingerprints are all over this earth. Every inch of it echoes His careful, passionate, artistic Hand.
17. Try strange food. You may never get the chance to eat fried tarantula again. Think twice about passing it up.
18. In Africa, ask your driver how long a trip will take you. Multiply by Pi (3.14). That’s how long it will actually take you.
19. New clothes don’t have to be new; just new to you. #hellofreepile
20. Don’t limit what God can do based on your awareness of it. Remember your finiteness always.
21. When bucket showering with gathered rain water, always do a quick dead gecko or tadpole check before you start dumping it on your head. #lessonlearned
22. If someone hands you food to try, eat it first; ask what it is later. It helps the hesitancy and it’s also a fun internal game I like to play called “Is this an animal or a vegetable?”
23. Spend money on experiences; not stuff.
24. Pray bold prayers. The God of the Universe – the God who made you and me and all we see – is leaning into your prayers, hanging on every word. You’ve got nothing to lose.
25. If you live in Africa long enough, your idea of a “toilet” begins to get a whole lot more broad. Foot high grass on a long travel day? That’ll do just fine.
26. If your bucket list doesn’t include going on a safari, add it now. Trust me. It is glorious.
27. Sharing the gospel isn’t limited to what you think it is. Allow God to speak through you in more ways than you ever could have imagined.
28. If you go cliff jumping, watch out for signs around you telling you that you can’t in fact do that. Even if they’re tiny and half buried in the sand. I apologize now to the protected schools of rare fish we stirred up in Lake Malawi.
29. When living in community, traveling the world, and serving with an abundance of different ministries, you will inevitably encounter people who think and believe differently than you do. Embrace it. Hear them. Learn from them. Let it challenge your faith and cause you to seek truth in your own heart while unconditionally loving them and honoring them.
30. If you go to Thailand, eat milk roti from a street vendor and khao soi anywhere you can find it in Chiang Mai. Trust me. TRUST ME.
31. Few people have more wisdom and love (and capacity to transport more candy overseas) than Bobby and Sharon Floyd.
32. Doubt is the most tempting sin out there.
33. Socks and chacos are so in style right now.
34. I have no idea what is in style right now.
35. When you lose your travel pillow in month 4, you can substitute with packing cubes, your thickest clothes wadded into a ball, dirty laundry (proceed with caution on this one), your arm, your teammates arm, and the best of all: a replacement travel pillow the lovely Joy Powers leaves you with 3 months later.
36. No other country seems to be as passionate about toilet paper as America is. If you’re attached to it, better bring your own.
37. Do something uncomfortable once a week (It may or may not be related to a lack of toilet paper while traveling). Prepare for growth.
38. If you have an issue with someone, tell them. Don’t let it fester inside of you. Healthy communication is so key.
39. You haven’t been given gifts and passions for no reason. Combine them. Use them.
40. Keep a straw in your nalgene. It makes drinking on the go a lot easier but it’s a lot easier to clean than a camelbak bottle. (Shout out to my girl Nicole Bouza on this one. She is one smart Cuban).
41. Daniel, Matthew, Rita, Belle, Robyn, Tony, Chelsea, Kori, Arden, Wendy, Deb, Carly, Kelly, Michelle, Jinnae, Stacie, Jason, Cait, Miranda, Jacob, Nathan, Ci-Ci, Heidi, Stephanie, Courtney, Margaret, Shannon, Andrea, Tara, Nicole, Laura, Kim, Aly, Heather, Kelsey, Cody, Jayce, Beth, Lacey and Dillon are the 40 best people I could ever dream of traveling the world with. They have taught me, poured into me, challenged me and called out the best in me. They’re my family and I love them more than I ever imagined I could. Thanks for teaching and learning these lessons with me. #41strongforlife
