It’s been two weeks since training camp ended, which means I’ve had two weeks to fully process the explosion of craziness that consumed the 10 days I spent getting to know my squad. 10 days of spiritual growth, physical challenges, healing and redemption, and the creation of new friendships. I could sit here and tell you in great detail of the events that transpired, but we’d be here for hours. Instead, I’ll leave you with the main thing I was able to take away from this experience.
My main source of trepidation about going on the World Race was leaving behind the community I worked so hard to build over the past two years. After moving back home when I graduated college, I recognized that I no longer had a strong community of friends and believers surrounding me. So I decided to go out and make one. The thought of leaving this behind for 11 months was enough to give me second thoughts about following God’s calling for me. However, as we all know, I decided to take a leap of faith.
Upon arriving to training camp, I was greeted by a group of 45 strangers who quickly grew to be my family. I was accepted with open arms by each individual for exactly who I am, with no judgment, only love. I will be forever grateful to this group of former strangers because through them, I learned how to better love people.
Love cannot be based on a feeling. Feelings are fleeting, and if this were the foundation that we built our love on, it would quickly disintegrate. We must learn to recognize that love is a choice. It’s a decision, an action, a commitment. We choose to love people daily by how we treat them and speak to them, regardless of how we may feel at the moment. There were plenty of times during training camp when I was tired, grumpy, and uncomfortable, but God was able to give me the perseverance to push through that so that I could better love my team in a way that is glorifying to Him.
God used a group of people, who are all so different and beautiful, to teach me about the power of honoring him by loving His children. By choosing to love each other daily and intentionally, God brought our squad closer together in such a short amount of time. By transforming love from feelings into actions and overcoming times of selfishness, we were able to overcome differences and learn how to become a family in just 10 short days.
I am beyond excited to spread God’s kingdom with this group of magnificent and powerful people. I know that if we are able to love God’s world and His children as well as we are able to love each other, then we will surely see His kingdom come.
Thank you so much for your continual prayers and support! I look forward to sharing my experiences and what God is doing in the world with you throughout the next year!
