What do you see when you look in the mirror- when you look past the exterior and into your heart and soul?
What parts do you like? What areas do you hope to grow in?
When you think about yourself a year from now, what do you see?
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Near the end of training camp, I was given my team of 6 beautiful and fun ladies who will launch to India with me! When you look at them, this is what you might see. From left to right starting at the top, meet Gabbie, Grace, Kayla, Paige, Kristen, and Kamiren. There have been two great blogs written about our team; check them out here and here.
After receiving our team, we were sent into town and told to make a memory. Our first stop was at a coffee shop because we had been sleep and coffee deprived for 8 days. Once we were settled, I pulled out my story cards. (Story Cards are a pack of square, artistic pictures that can hold a lot of symbolism. It’s simple, but it’s incredible how much vulnerability and conversation flows. I ordered them online from North Point church to bring on the Race with me.) I told the team to pick a card that describes how they view themselves.
After we all shared why we chose each card, we decided to take a selfie with the selected card. Our hope is that God transforms us and grows us in incredible ways this year, and we will choose a different card in 11 months. Here is how each of my teammates would describe themselves:
Gabbie chose the flower blooming because she feels that she is finally stepping into all the incredible things God wants to do through her.
Grace picked the couple on the beach because she sees the love in everyone she meets and in everything she does.
Kayla spends her time teaching and pouring into the youth at her church, and she knows there will be a lot of teaching and learning involved during our Race.
Paige is like the deep roots because she has been shaped by the experiences and people in her life.
Kristen is structured yet creative, complex, and meticulously designed like a spider web.
Kamiren is bold like a bright pink door, and she isn’t afraid to say the hard things.
During our conversations, we discussed different team names. Our team name becomes part of our identity; it’s how the ministry hosts will view us before they meet us. We decided on Team Hesed. Hesed is a Hebrew word often translated as loyal love. It is found in the book of Ruth. Discovertheword.org defines it this way:
“Hesed is difficult to translate because it stands for a cluster of ideas—love, mercy, grace, kindness. It wraps up in itself all the positive attributes of God. Hesed is one of the Lord’s most treasured characteristics.”
These ladies will be my anchor as we launch to India in one month. They will encourage me, celebrate with me, worship with me, and call me to higher things as we help each other better reflect Christ. We hope that our interactions with each other and with the people we meet will be filled with loyal love, mercy, grace, and kindness.
*To keep up with what my team will be doing on the Race, hit the Follow Me button and subscribe to my blog.
