This past week, my squad and I went to training camp down in Gainesville, GA. It was so wonderful to finally meet everyone face to face, and to be able to spend some quality time together, getting to know each other and bonding with one another before we embark on our 11 month journey.
Our week included a series of talks by Rob Reimer. Rob challenged us to do some serious soul care, to examine our relationship with God, as well as our relationships with others. As with all soul searching, you have to get real, raw, and honest with yourself before The Lord. You have to let His light shine into the deepest and darkest parts of your heart where all of the lies, condemnation, secrets, struggles, and pain are hidden. This is by no means easy, it’s painful and tough, and it’s been something that I have really been working on with God the past year or so. But let me assure you that by allowing God in, you will be comforted and healed, and you will experience more love, joy, and freedom than you could ever imagine! So go to those hard places, and let God in, it’s worth it, I promise.
So as a result this week was a big reconfirmation for me in the sense that I am in the right place and I am headed in the direction that God wants me to go. I felt waves of God’s love, joy, peace, healing, and freedom just flood my heart all week long! It was miraculous and purely spectacular! I cannot thank God enough for healing me, restoring me, and setting me free so that I can go out and share this overflow of God’s love, healing, peace, power, restoration, joy, and freedom with all of the broken people in this world.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Besides that, we also received physical preparation for the World Race. We had to set up camp every night, and tear it all down every morning. We are now experts at setting up/ tearing down all of our tents by the way. We had various “real-life” simulations such as half of the squad losing their luggage and having to share what we had among us, we got stuck outside of a border and had to sleep on a bus, we got sent into the woods with tarps, some food, and a few things from our daypacks, we also had to share four big tents with everyone, etc. Our style of community living was like that in the book of Acts. It was tough but it was also great. We definitely overcame each obstacle and only became closer because of it.
Along side of this we had cultural days and ate food from each part of the world on different days. We received practical information to take with us on the race as well. Such as advice on packing, blogging, video recording, photography, worship, security, finances, team work, etc. We also did a lot of team building activities and ended the week with squad wars! Within our squads, we are broken up into teams of 6-7 people. My team name is Beautifully Broken, and I will introduce you to these 5 wonderful women in a later blog.
Needless to say training camp was an amazing experience, and I would not have gotten there without all of your guys’ love and support so thank you from the bottom of my heart!! It truly means the world to me!
If you would like to invest in God’s kingdom by supporting me financially or through prayer I would greatly appreciate it. As of now I still need $3,000 more in order to launch in 6 weeks! If you would like to support me, please click the link at the top of the page to make a tax-deductible donation.
Thank you and God bless!
Love,
Jessica
My beautiful squad! H Squad! #WorldRice #AllAsiaRoute #RedHot
This is my team “Beautifully Broken”! I will be living and serving with these 5 amazing women this upcoming year! And I cannot wait to see all of the awesome things God has in store for us and everyone we will come into contact with!
