Sorry for the delay in the continuation of this series. Life got a little busy.
“I do not know my five-year plan, even tomorrow will probably not go as I have planned. I am thrilled and I am terrified, in a good way. Some call it courage; some call it foolish; I call it faith. I choose to get out of the boat. Sometimes I walk straight into His arms. More often, I get scared and look down and stumble. Sometimes I almost completely drown. And through it all, He never lets go of my hand.” – Katie Davis
The good news is that school is OVER NOW! So I can focus on preparing for the race, and writing blogs for you lovely people. So to continue…
7. Grieve when you need to, but then let healing come.
A lot of the talks at training camp were directed at grief and healing. One of the most important things I took away from the speaker was that everyone grieves differently. And that we are all wounded, just at different levels. But a little grief is still grief. And you can’t sweep it under the rug; you have to ask God to heal it. So what am I grieving currently? The end of this chapter of life. And I know, some of you think I’m crazy. “But you’re about to take the trip of a lifetime! How could you be sad to move forward?” Well, because this was never what I wanted. I never had plans to move away from my family or friends, let alone leave the country for a year. Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited! And I’ve come to accept and be grateful for the journey God has put me on. But there are things I’m going to miss about this chapter of life. I’m going to miss being a coach, catching up with a friend in downtown Athens for coffee or dinner, being able to go home any weekend I want, being able to call my sisters, worshiping and serving at Athens Church, spending time with my boyfriend, Saturdays in Athens (i.e., Georgia Football), and so much more.
But I realize that having such a hard time saying goodbye simply means I’ve been incredibly blessed the past 3 years I’ve lived in Athens. I’ve found absolutely incredible friends, a church that feels like home, and a city that feels like home, and a Godly man who loves and encourages me more than I thought possible. So yes, leaving all that is hard. And it makes me sad. So I’ll be praying, and I ask you to join me, that God can heal this grief. That the pain of leaving, and the homesickness that will follow, won’t consume me on this race. That I can learn to let go and trust that God has more in store for me.
8. Be Present
With letting go comes the idea of being present. Being present during this last month at home, and then learning to be present on the field. It’s a tough concept. I have to shift from being 100% present with my family, friends, and life in the States to being 100% present with my teammates, squad, and life on the field in a matter of 3 days (at launch).
It’s hard to not get consumed with “what’s up ahead.” I don’t want to spend my last month at home being so excited about the race that I miss out on valuable time with my loved ones here. I also don’t want to spend my last month at home being sad about leaving. So I’m trying my best to spend my last month at home like it’s not my “last month at home” but that it’s simply another month of my life. Because that’s what it is. I also don’t want to spend months on the field looking forward to being home. Because home will come, and I don’t want to wish away any second of this incredible mission trip. So I am learning, and will continue to learn, how to be present and happy wherever I am for as long as I’m there.
9. Get in the river!!
No, no. Not like the line from the Notebook where Noah is yelling at Allie to get in the water. But more like getting in the river of Jesus Christ. We would sing this song at camp with lyrics, “Take me out to the middle of the river, let me drown in the good ol’ river of your love.”
Long story short, there is no better time to get wrapped up and totally consumed with Jesus. I don’t want my relationship with God to waver over this next month by telling myself, “when I get on the race I’ll be closer with God.” No. That’s not gonna cut it for me. I want to be in the middle of the river before launching, so that I can fully experience everything God has for me. And I want to stay in the middle of the river, during the race, after the race… for eternity. I don’t ever want to be at a place where my relationship with God is not the number 1 priority in my life. Because I’ve been in that place before, and I don’t want to go back. So this month I plan on drowning in the river.
And I encourage you to do the same. Don’t wait for the next big step in life, or even for tomorrow to come in order to surrender everything to Him. Because just like Noah wanted Allie to get in the water right then, God wants you to get in the river NOW. He doesn’t want us to waste a minute not being consumed by His powerful love.
10. Holy Spirit, come.
For those of you who were at training camp, how many times did we hear this line? 🙂
Haha, but for those of you who weren’t there, we spent a lot of time talking and learning about the Holy Spirit. And after worshiping with my squad all week, being prayed over by countless people… essentially being poured into in the greatest ways possible, I have learned that the Holy Spirit is here. And the Holy Spirit is alive, and moving, and doing powerful things. Jesus left us the Holy Spirit, so don’t ignore the power it holds. And don’t be afraid to ask the spirit to come.
11. Stank Worship!
I know you all are dying to know where stank worship came from. Essentially, stank worship looks a little something like this.
It looks silly, weird, and hardly resembles worshiping at all. But what actually “resembles” worshiping? Is it hands raised, is it hands down? Is it dancing, or is it standing still? Is it singing loudly, or being quiet to soak the music in? Or does it involve music at all? Maybe worshiping takes place in the amount of time it takes you to drink your cup of coffee in the morning. Maybe worshiping happens when you go for a walk outside and listen to the noises and see the sights of the world. Worshiping looks and is different for everyone. Who are we to judge how others feel close to God?
Stank worship started as something silly, when we realized how great of a stank face Ronny has. But to me, stank worship means we are free to make any joyful and ridiculous sound or move for God as long as He knows our intentions.
So be prepared to see a lot of pictures of #stankworship happening all over the world, iSquad is fairly certain it will be the next world wide movement.
UPDATES:
I have found out that launch begins Sept 6th in Atlanta! So I have about a month left at home, and then the journey to Panama begins. Please keep me and my squad in your prayers as we prepare for out departure.
I still need about $3,000 more to hit my goal of having $11,000 raised by Sept 6th! Please consider donating to my yard sale (that is this weekend!), coming to my paint party on August 17th, or clicking the “Support Me!” tab on the left side of the page. Also, I have some percentage nights at some local restaurants in the works, so I’ll keep you posted on those.
