After 11 months of the Race, I compiled a list of things I wish I would have known before I left. Some things were learned the hard way, but I hope in sharing them with you, it makes your life on the Race a little easier:
Make time for God. It’s just as hard, if not MORE difficult to make time for Him when you’re on the field. But trust me, you need Him to be a part of what you’re doing.
Debriefs become an easy place for the enemy to harm your heart for your team– they are not a time for you to go to your other squadmates and complain about your team. Talking about people behind their backs is not a way to deal with situations. If you have a problem with someone be strong enough to deal with it by talking to them.
When you’re asked to paint for ministry, turn your clothes inside out, it will protect how they look…at least a little longer.
If you are not comfortable with conflict, learn to deal with it. People will have different opinions than you, that doesn’t mean they are wrong or you are wrong, but you should be able to love them.
Your team is your team, there is very little you can do to change that. What you do have control of is making friends. Don’t get so caught up in the duties of the Race that you can only see them as your teammates and not friends. Share some good times together- not just work and feedback times.
Don’t blow your month’s budget on food. You’ll regret it- both physically and financially. Most people on my squad would admit their weight gain came from the unhealthy things they were buying on the side.
I expected cultural differences interacting with natives…it was the cultural differences between teammates that were the most difficult. Again, just because they are different doesn’t mean they are wrong.
Take your feedback to God. Well-intended teammates could be wrong. And just because they are all giving you the same feedback does not make them right either. There are plenty of people in the Bible who became great leaders because they listened to God, not the multitudes (Moses, Jesus…). But be careful not to use God as an excuse for your own stubbornness.
Also, feedback is often about finding the right balance. I found myself taking some feedback to the extremes, and was getting the opposite feedback at the end of the year as I was in the beginning. Find the balance.
Consider giving yourself feedback. Give it in front of your team. It will humble you, and give your teammates a chance to give insight and encourage you. If you continue to focus on feedback on for your teammates, you’ll never grow yourself.
Blog! You’d be surprised how it can minister to people at home.
Download a VLC player on your computer before you leave on the Race, especially if you have a Mac, it will allow you to play any movie file type, and I find it is louder than other players (good for when 8 people want to crowd around a computer).
Download Pinger (and use it at least once/month) it gives you a US phone number, and allows you to text and talk to friends as if you had a cell phone when you have internet. No one else has to have the app to talk to you. Best part, texts are free and so are receiving calls.
Bring a Kindle if you plan on reading, most of my squad that didn’t have one regretted it. It’s difficult finding books in English abroad. On the same note, don’t forget that reading Christian books does not replace reading the Bible.
Don’t come into the Race with tightly defined buzzwords. Brokenness does not have to look like crying on your bed for 3 days straight, processing does not mean 3 hours of journaling and avoiding teammates.
One of the greatest things I learned on the Race was to voice my needs. There are better ways to do it, but not doing it makes it difficult for people to love you. It’s important when you ask for things though, not to expect it all the time. Often you’ll find it may be good enough just to have someone consider your request.
I hope you find these helpful! If you have any questions, feel free to message me!
