The World Race looked glamorous in a way. It was 11 months of traveling the world and loving on people all in the name of Jesus. The more and more I looked into it, the more it drew me in and before I knew it I had clicked submit on my application and paid my deposit fee saying yes.
I didn't have many fears coming on the race. I knew it would be challenging, probably the hardest year of my life, I knew I would eat strange things, and I knew limits of endurance would be tested. My biggest fear was being placed on an all girls team! The day I interviewed for the world race, I remember them asking about co-ed vs all girls teams. I begged and pleaded my case to be placed on a co-ed team. I prayed for weeks leading up to training camp for a co-ed team… Well I got my wish. Co-ed team.
I was on a co-ed team for 4 months. January through April I spent 24/7 living in close quarters with 3 other girls and 3 guys. Now for someone who didn't grow up with brothers, I quickly learned that things just aren't the same when you are living with guys in the same place sharing just about everything. Now don't get me wrong, I love the men I was on a team with and they taught me so much about what godly men and brothers in Christ look like, but it wouldn't compare to what God had in store for me.
Our debrief at the beginning of month 5 rolled around and I knew team changes were coming. Leaders were changed out and new teams slowly began to form as names were called out. I sat there listening for my name and then I heard it mixed in with 6 other girls names…an ALL GIRLS TEAM. I was happy to a point but also a little worried since all of these girls had just been on a team together and I was the only new person. Fears of being left out, not being included in the stories, and fear of being judged for everything roared through my mind. I already knew that some of the girls and I wouldn't get along and it was going to be a long however many months of being on the same team.
The first 2 weeks of that month I distanced myself which wasn't hard because we weren't working together since the whole squad was there and I had an injury. I kept to myself, kept my walls high, and tried to receive the least amount of feedback as possible. It worked for the most part until month 6 when our team was alone… I was going to have to get real.
God revealed to me how much I lacked good Godly women in my life. I grew up with a sister but we were never close. Sure I have a few incredible girl friends back home, but we don't really live close and we don't ask the hard heart questions. This team of girls, Team Ari, asked the hard questions. They loved me so much and kept making it a point to tell me that I wasn't just a 7th member to the team and that I didn't have to live life from the outside looking in. I opened up and shared about my struggles while on the race, how I felt about each of them, and how I was struggling to hear from God. We had so many great nights of prayer and real true honesty about how our hearts were doing. I gained 6 absolutely amazing sisters in Christ that month. I was sad that I wasted some of the time I had with them month 5, but God loves to redeem us even when we fail in the small things. I got my wish to be on a co-ed team, but I also received God's wish that I experienced true women of the Lord, a sisterhood that I will never forget.
Our team was only together 2 months and I cried the night we found out we were such an incredibly close team who loved and served each other so well that they needed to break us apart to help other teams.
It's hard not to have expectations about certain things, but I definitely never expected to learn what I did in 2 short months. I now long and wish for this same sisterhood for back home.
Thank you Team Ari for showing me the depths of grace and love. Stacie, Michelle, Stephanie, Robyn, Laura, and Wendy, I love you so much. You changed my heart, and life will never be the same without you ladies!
