Turn around. The impression in my spirit was strong enough that it was clearly the Holy Spirit. I yelled ahead to Josh and Michael that I felt like I was supposed to go back. We turned around and approached the women holding the baby llama. I sensed the Spirit again prompting to take the photo. I should clarify that I hate the touristy staged shots that people often take when visiting countries. I actively try to avoid those situations. So when God told me to take a picture with a woman holding a baby llama my immediate response was “why”? He didn’t give me the answer in the moment and I proceeded to take a very awkward photo, pay her the three sols (about 1 US dollar) and walk away. I tried to start a bit of a conversation with her during our brief photo shoot, but could tell she just wanted her money and to move on to the next tourist. As I walked away feeling awkward and confused as to the whole encounter I asked God “What was that about”? His response was simple, “I wanted you to obey when you don’t understand or see a reason why”.
This could define training camp.
It’s been a week of simply learning to listen and obey the Holy Spirit without overcomplicating it. It’s been a week of saying “I don’t need to always understand why you do things the way you do them, I just want to be apart of what you’re doing!” I’ve gotten to talk to fellow travelers, pray with strangers, and grow in community with my team this past week. But my favorite part of training camp is that God is actively challenging and changing my assumptions about how Christianity, and especially Christian ministry, is supposed to work. I am so excited for what God is going to do over the next 11 months!
My awkward llama photo! 🙂 
