As I sit here in a coffee shop not far from home, the same one I’ve spent hours upon hours studying, writing lesson plans, writing papers, having bible studies with friends, and life discussions over lattes, I’m trying to process just exactly what happened last week.
Training Camp.
It honestly is really difficult to put it all into words, especially in blog-form. I can easily spend hours talking about everything we did- food and meals, sleeping situations, lessons learned, squad unity and team formation activities, heart to heart discussions, etc. So now I’m asking myself- what did I learn throughout Training Camp? One thing keeps coming to mind.
I am a skeptic.
Before Camp, I read many blogs where Racers talked about the amazing things that would happen during their week. They wouldn’t ever be specific about the activities, the food, the discussions you’d have with people you met just 24 hours prior. They would just say that it was amazing. And that by the end of the week they had a family.
That’s where it got me.
Really, a FAMILY? Yeah, right. Nobody can manage to make those kinds of relationships with complete strangers in just 8 days. Maybe they were exaggerating, saying that they were a family, when really they were excited about meeting new people and knowing that eventually they would become close. But they couldn’t POSSIBLY have those “I’d do anything for you because you’re my sister/brother and I love you with all of my heart” relationships.
And maybe there really were those rare instances where a few people felt instant connections with a few squadmates, but that wouldn’t happen with me. I always take a while to warm up to people. I’m not super outgoing when I first meet someone, and I typically keep everything surface-level until I’ve reached a point of trust, and then I’ll slowly start to open my heart.
Well, the Lord had a different plan for me. Within the first 24 hours of meeting my squadmates, I found myself sitting with two other people, talking about who I was struggling with forgiving. Talk about being vulnerable. Not too much later, I found myself in yet another small group discussing other topics that were in the deepest parts of our hearts. Things that you don’t normally talk about with your closest friends, yet I was spilling my guts to people whom I wasn’t even sure if I remembered their names.
And through all of this, you know what happened? We bonded. We formed that mutual trust that is so desperately needed when forming a relationship. For the next few days, we continued the pattern of learning and sharing, opening your heart to others, being vulnerable, and allowing them to love on you. It was.. well.. amazing.
While the super deep heart to hearts were a common theme, we had our fair share of silliness, laughter, endless dance parties, stargazing, eating with our hands, playing a little game called “What are the odds..?”, and many team unity activities. We relied on one another mentally, spiritually, and physically. We trekked up gravel hills, slept under the stars, sweated more than ever before, all ate off the same spork, sang every Disney song ever created, and got attacked by bees and wasps.
We welcomed the Lord’s love. We cried with one another. We encouraged and built each other up. We praised and worshiped and danced for the Lord. We learned to listen to the Holy Spirit when praying for another, and guys, there were some experiences that I’ve never encountered before, and it was absolutely the Lord’s doing.
Near the end of the week, our teams were announced. While I will be traveling from country to country with my squad of 40 people, I will be living and doing ministry with a group of 7 ladies. These women will be my family, my support system, the ones who will push me and challenge me and help me grow. I was hesitant when our team was announced, to be completely honest. I found myself skeptical yet again wondering how in the world I would thrive with a group of women I barely knew, and I had my heart set on a different team. But of course, the Lord knew what he was doing. We spent the afternoon together in Gainesville eating dinner at a restaurant, getting ice cream, and just hanging out with one another. During that afternoon, I laughed harder and more than I did the rest of the week combined. We were acting like #barbarians in public. #4days in the woods is all it takes, my friends. By the time we went back to camp, I was so encouraged and excited to do life with these ladies. We come from all walks of life, all parts of the country (and CANADA!), and I am confident that the Lord put us together because he knew we would grow.
Guys, I feel like I’m starting to ramble, so I’ll wrap this up. Usually when I start to talk about how the Lord changed my heart, I end up talking really slowly, trying to find the right words for everything I’m feeling. My heart is so full right now. God showed up. He flipped my heart and mind upside down last week. He loves us more than we can imagine. He handpicked every single person on L Squad and asked us to go on this trip with him. Ah, I’m so freakin excited to see what He’s got up His sleeve.
L Squad, I love ya. I didn’t think it could happen in a week, but I do. See you guys in a few weeks!!
