As promised, a whole blog about debrief! Debrief was a week of rest + transformation. Squad W went to Lake Atitlan for about a week and stayed at the Selina Hostel + man was it fancy! Our days consisted of sleeping in, swimming in the pool + lake, + resting with the Lord in what He had done + shown us this last month of the World Race in Guatemala.
During debrief, I decided to be adventurous + go cliff jumping, swimming in not so hot springs, + zip-lining! After all these adventures, the Lord revealed a lot about what the World Race had done through me in the first month. Here are some photos of all the adventures + what each adventure taught me:
Cliff jumping captures the world race perfectly. Jumping into the unknown + uncomfortable.
A lot of times I find myself in situations where I am uncomfortable. I don’t know how to speak the native language, so I am oftentimes just the girl in the corner smiling. Sometimes I don’t know how to relate to some of the struggles that people are facing + get lost for words. Then I realize that the unknown + uncomfortable is so good. Through the unknown + uncomfortable I grow so much with my dependency on the Lord. I learn to trust that He has planned this all for me + that everything I do on the world race has been planned from the Lord. I learn that when I’m silent I get to be more intentional with listening to others’ stories + learning to love them better. The language barrier is not a hardship but instead a treasure. I learn that through all the struggles people go through, they grow closer + closer to the Lord. I learn that I should react to my struggles in the same way by rejoicing in the Lord, like those around me. I learn so much from all my surroundings. I learn to love better + encourage others to always rejoice in the Lord.
When my team + decided to go to the hot springs, we weren’t exactly sure where to go + we honestly got pretty lost! When we finally got a ride in the back of the pick-up truck, we took in all the beauty that surrounds us + prepared to get into some hot water! When we got to the place we were approached by some little girls who promised to bring us to the “Caliente agua”, so we decided to follow them + they literally brought us to a puddle of water! We had quite a laugh + ended up not really swimming in hot springs but instead in cold lake water! Although we had not found what we were looking for, the Lord gave us beautiful scenery, as pictured above, to enjoy + we made some new friends!
Zip-lining was another experience that allowed me to take in all the beauty that God has given us. Although I was scared of allowing a line to hold my weight across the lake, I did it! I learned that when we do scary things we really allow our trust to be in the Lord. And the World Race is scary, you don’t really ever know what’s going to happen, but man does it make you trust + depend on the Lord. He appears through everything you do. As I was zooming through the sky, I was filled with so much joy. I was thinking about how faithful the Lord is + how He not only made the world to be beautiful but also how He made me to be beautiful. The Lord made me to do the World Race + to teach of all the beauty life has when we allow Him into our lives + allow Him to take control of absolutely everything.
So yes, that was a little rundown of what I did at debrief + what it taught me. I can’t wait to keep “jumping” into the uncomfortable + unknown with the Lord by my side.
I ask y’all to pray for me as I jump back into ministry + finish strong here in Guatemala!
