Back to Pennsylvania and home from Training Camp! Feeling good, full of life and peace knowing God has me in His hands and excited to continue this season of preparation for the next year to come. God showed up big time as truth was spoken and His love completely surrounded us in His presence and His people. For ten days, I was in Gainesville, GA at the Adventures in Missions campground along with the other thirty-two racers on my route (R squad – route 2) and three other routes with squads leaving in January 2019.
During this time in Gainesville, our squad had a designated campground for where we’d put up our tents and sleep at night. This camping included setting up my tent with my sleeping pad (like a mattress), sleeping bag, sleeping liner, and travel pillow. I really haven’t gone camping much before, so this was a new experience for me. Over the course of the ten days, I learned what worked and what didn’t work. I learned to look for flatter areas, so I didn’t catch myself in the middle of the night sliding to the bottom of my tent. (This did happen once or twice, but I learned to put my pack at the end to rest my feet on.) I learned to prepare my pack well, to know where certain clothes should be packed, to organize the supplies I needed, and what I actually used or didn’t use from my pack.
While at the AIM campground, we lived in our tents, used porta potties, took bucket showers (imagine cold water from the hose put in a bucket with a measuring cup to clean off your body and wash your hair – quickly learned to embrace the cold), and ate foods from various cultures. We had themes per day with different guidelines depending on the region. Some examples from our ten days include we practiced using chopsticks one day, ate with our hands (no silverware or plates) multiple days, served one another and not ourselves, and used a certain hand for eating and not the other.
Our schedule at training camp included some unexpected challenges and field experiences that altered our typical day. Almost every morning we took down our tent from the day before, packed up all our things, and then waited for further instructions for the day. One day, we took our packs and were told it was a travel day to another country. In this scenario, half of our squad lost our luggage – our big packs – and the other half of the squad shared their belongings for the night. I had lost my big pack, so I had whatever was in my day pack (like a normal school backpack). I paired up with a girl from my squad named Vanessa who is a social worker from Texas. She is such a sweet soul who was so generous with her things. We ended up sharing stories about our backgrounds and learning more about one another. At night, we shared her camping supplies and I put on the layers I had. Despite the freezing temperatures, this was a beautiful experience we shared that pushed me to rely on Vanessa, speak up when I needed something, be vulnerable, and see her wonderful hospitality.
Another field experience included an airport scenario where we were traveling with a layover between planes. The experience included sleeping in an airport since it was night time for us but the airport was experiencing day time. We were in the main training center where we had sessions during training camp with the lights on, some chairs out resembling an airport, and a recording of airport announcements throughout the night. Thankfully, we had time to bring our sleeping pad, bag, and pillow since we would be aware of these layovers prior to traveling, and I was able to have my eye mask and ear buds to help with the circumstances. This was an interesting experience because when waking up in the middle of the night, I’d peer out and it felt like it was time to get up with the lights on even though it was 2 or 3am in the morning. I ended up being super tired that night, so I was able to sleep through most of the night with some headphone music on as well.
Our time at training camp also included sessions three to four times a day where we heard messages about intimacy, community, and missions – three pillars that were emphasized in relation to our relationship with God, one another, the body of Christ, and the world. These sessions were taught from various individuals connected to Adventures in Missions, and God used these sessions to realign my heart to Him in this season of preparation for next year. I also attended sessions with ministry topics including teaching, preaching, children’s ministry, and worship.
His presence was so evident as He drew me closer to Him as He covered me in His love and freedom. He accepts me just as I am and desires for me to live fully surrounded by His love and presence. I don’t have to work harder and harder to earn His love. He gives with abundance and is my place of rest and refuge. So thankful for this community that encouraged worship, prayer, and learning in the ways the Lord has created us to grow and praise Him. More blogs to come to share about how the Lord was working in my heart and the community developed during this time. I’ll be sharing about my new team, the fitness hike, the Holy Spirit, and my reflections.
More deadlines coming up, so I’d love for you to join in partnership with me through prayer and support. Shirts fundraiser (link below) is active for next 4 days and the orders will ship November 9th! Please consider becoming a part of this journey with me as the Lord does some great things in the next year! Check out the list of ways to partner with me below.
Talk to you soon,
Madison
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