Expectations. We all develop them. For me, they become a coping mechanism in anticipating the unknown.
The first night of training camp, I joined 6 people in holding on to a torch, walking through the darkened woods, and being asked to lay down my expectations. We all smiled and nodded, and made a mark to show we agreed.
I had no idea what I was getting into. I believe you don't really realize what your expectations are until they are not met. Then when things don't go the way you imagined or hoped, your perceived reality is rocked and it is unsettling.
For some, training camp may have stretched their view on what an itinerary should consist of, and the lack of information on what we were going to be doing exactly for the next 9 days. For others, it may have been when they were handed a banana tomato and cheese sandwich and a bowl of cornmeal, and told to eat, knowing there was no food coming for another 6 hours. Still others may have felt unrest venturing into the forest to fend for ourselves for the night.
When people ask how training camp was, I reply with "awesome!" But like all the best things in my life, there were challenging moments along the way. I had expectations of who my teammates should be. I had expectations of what we should do during our bonding and ATL (Ask the Lord) times.
I learned to submit my desires and ideas to those of my leaders, teammates, and to surrender my plan to God's. I'm pretty sure His is messier along the way but WAY more rewarding in the end.
Future World Racers:
Expect God to show up.
Expect to be rocked to your core.
Expect awesome things to happen.
And expect that your squad mates are probably not who you perceived them to be on your first impression.
