On the Race life has been about being flexible and constantly dealing with a ton of moving parts. You can almost always bet on something changing after plans are made but you just learn to roll with it.
Not only do you learn how to be more flexible but you also learn more about yourself and others around you. You get to work within your teams to dig deeper with each other and find out who you are, what your gifts are, and what you are passionate about. One of my biggest goals of the Race was to figure out what my role in the Kingdom is. I spent a lot of time praying, reflecting, and talking to my teammates about the qualities they saw in me. To be honest it took me until the end of month ten to figure it out. But I got there!
One of my teammates brought insight to the things I was feeling and helped me verbally process what qualities I possess and how they are used within the Kingdom. For a long time I thought that I had to find my place in a spiritual gift that was actually written down in the Bible, things like pastor, teacher, prophet. He taught me that as long as it is a quality that Jesus would possess and I do it well it can be a spiritual gift. He also taught me that the gifts listed sound restricting but they don’t necessarily have to be. You can look at them with a broader view and still fit into that “category”.
I am organized, meticulous, and good at deligating tasks. On spiritual gifting tests they put that under administration. Ryan pointed out the fact that those are all qualities that a leader posses.
He then asked me what is something I do very well and that is something I enjoy doing. I love taking care of people and making sure that they feel seen and protected. On the Race I see that most often when I am doing tasks for my role as safety coordinator. I get to take care of people when they are sick, take them to the doctor, call insurance, do paper work for insurance, share my knowledge of how to stay safe in different situations, etc. Literally some of my favorite days on the Race is when I get one on one time with a person and get to take them to the doctor. It isn’t always pretty or easy, sometimes it is very stressful and chaotic but I absolutely love it!
One thing to remember when looking at spiritual gifts is that we can always ask for more. God will continue to grow us in areas that we used to just be decent at but now we can do very well. Ryan’s advice is to find two or three of your strongest giftings and work mostly within those things. You are free to ask for more, grow in those, and practice them, but let your priorities remain under those two or three. Find your calling and make your main ministry within those few strong points.
I am a protector.
I am a nurturer.
I am a leader.
I AM A LEADER.
Remember the thing about plans changing?
Well my plans are changing because I get to be an ALUMNI TEAM LEADER!
I get the chance to put all of these gifts to use!
This means that I will be heading back into the field again in October with a different squad who has never done the Race before.
Why do they do this?
Coming on the Race is a big spriritual, mental, and physical transition than most people are used to making. On top of that the squad has roles within that have to be filled. Things like treasurer, logistics, team leaders, safety coordinator. By having an alumni come along aside the new squad they can help navigate what it is like to live life on the Race, disciple new racers, and show them what community living is supposed to look like in this environment. Another benefit is that there will be less people in a leadership position to begin with so they have some time to figure things out and live life as a normal racer without having the added stress of a role.
I will be joining my next squad when they go to Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina this fall. Two of my friends from my current squad will be joining me on this team leading journey. I will also get to continue learning from two awesome mentors who helped guide me through my Race!!
Because of this I will only have a month home before I have to leave again…but…
BONUS!! I will be able to fly home before Christmas before starting another chapter!!
I am really looking forward to this opportunity and would love to have you along for the journey. I will continue posting blogs and keeping you updated during that time. If you would like to partner with me you can do so by donating at the top of this page or by starting to pray for my new squad and me!
Thanks for all the love and support!!
XOXO
Steffy
