Please pray for our squad as we head to Africa for the next three months of ministry. As we enter this new lag of the race, we go into Africa with new teams too. Earlier this week we had some team changes. The original teams we had were fine, but there is a point in time in this race in when we all need to go deeper in who we are as people, who we are as Christians (and in community), and who we are in Christ. I believe that each one of us, although we were making breakthroughs in our lives and growing, had to go through these changes to avoid complacency. Even though each person on this squad loved the team they were on, it was time for a new season to implement greater development of the mind, heart, and spirit.
My new team is great. We are going to be serving with one of the other teams this month (when I can I will give a better synopsis of our service there). New faces, new personalities, and new roles for the team and individuals. What I noticed throughout this debrief is how different people are and how far they have come in their growth process just within four months of the race. Take note that we have seven more months to go. This debrief brought some change to the mix in order to become a stronger unit within the greater body (squad) and the smaller body (teams). And, I believe that it will be easier for the teams to work together because of the familiarity of everyone on the squad now. Back in January when we first started the race, we hardly knew anything about anyone. Months passed by without letting one another in on each other’s lives. God works everything out for His purposes in all things and people. Everyone is pretty happy and excepting of the changes. These changes will more than likely continue the process of breakthrough people have had since the race started. It will be interesting to see who and how I am in this new team. I think my voice will be louder and stronger in this new team than it was on the last one. Even in the few days of new teams I have noticed that I have been more vocal and more expressive of what I have been thinking and how I have been feeling.
The ‘story’ of this squad is not the same now. The squad and the teams will heavily benefit with the shift of people. We were almost like little Jonahs running away from God less than eager to be His hands and feet in this world. The season is changing and I see that the mentality and the spirit of our group is starting to embrace the authority Christ has given us to advance the Kingdom. Our group is ready to start believing in each other and fight for each other. No longer are we individuals fighting for our own spiritual, comfortable territories. Four months has taught us how falsely infused we were with the world’s teachings instead of Jesus’ teachings. Hopefully now we can put into practice what the Apostle John taught in 1 John 1:5-10 about walking in the Light of Christ.
This next part of the race is not going to be easy by any means. The first four months were comfortable living, but the life in Swaziland is unfortunately engulfed in death and sorrow. AIDS in not an epidemic in Swaziland. It is so much more than that. The culture and the people are slave to the deadly disease with hardly any education to empower themselves and each other. However, this testosterone driven society adds to the hardship and the ability for true societal and civil change. Please pray that the Holy Spirit and Christ’s love captures this nation of Swaziland. Please pray for supernatural protect, discernment, and strength for our entire squad also. That we can be the hope and the light the people there need; not by our own strength, but by God’s strength – not by our own wills, but by God’s will.
