Meet Team Harmony

The World Race is in constant flux. We never really get
settled into one place or into one way of doing something because we know that
it will change. As I mentioned before, debrief in Nairobi brought several
changes. The biggest change is that we have new teams again. Although we found
our about our new teams in Nairobi, we are just starting our time together
because of MANistry last month.  So I
felt that a blog introducing our new team is only appropriate… 

Kris Tippett, Carrie Campbell, Tom Kowatch, Casey Kowatch, Angela Murray, Garrett McNiell

Meet Team Harmony! I’m extremely excited about this new
team! I have had the chance to be on a team with or work with everyone on the
team except Garrett, and I truly love them all. They are an amazing group of
people to say the least!

We decided on Harmony as our team name because we feel that
it is a perfect description of our team. The definition of Harmony is ‘a
musical combination of sounds, pleasing arrangement of parts, lack of conflict,
internal calm.’ I truly believe that our team will be able to live together in
a true harmony, lacking conflict, and with an internal calm.

We pray that this internal peace will allow the team to focus
on the things that really matter, pushing each other in our relationship with
the Lord. That’s our simple goal. We want to further understand the True Love
that God has for each of us. In a world that has completely corrupted the word
love, we want to be a light. We want to be a team that loves each other well; a
team that loves as a result of the love God has showed us. We want our team to
be a real, tangible example to this broken world of what it means when we say
that the God of the universe loves you. 

It is our hope that we actually put into practice the things
that we constantly talk about. We know the right answers and the right things
to say. Everyone will say that they
want to be intentional with each other, with our ministry, and with our walk
with the Lord. Everyone says that
they want to put distractions aside and run after God. Everyone says that they want to “choose in”. And
everyone says they desire a unified
and safe environment.

My prayer (and I hope your prayer for us) is that we make
this a reality. I pray that we live with no
reservations, no retreat, and no
regrets. I believe that to accomplish these things we have to be willing to
sacrifice. We are going to have to give up our own desires for comfort. We will
have to lay down our own selfish ambitions. It’s not enough to do the 2 hours
of “scheduled” ministry for the day and then spend the rest of the time surfing
the internet or watching TV. It will require us to sacrifice our (as if it is ours) time to make this
community really happen. I can say with 100% confidence that we would never
look back and say, “I really wish I had spent more time on Facebook when I was
in Cambodia”. We will never regret the time we invest in the team, in our walk
with the Lord or in the ministry we are working with. I’m fully confident of
that. However, I am an easily distracted person.  So I do ask for your prayer.

I also ask that you pray for our new team. We have had a
couple weeks together as a team, and we are still figuring out things out. Pray
that our team will not miss out on the incredible opportunities before us. Pray
that we aren’t distracted, but that we are focused on God. Pray that we show
each other genuine love, outdo each other in showing honor, and live
sacrificially.

Also, I am the team leader for Team Harmony. I obviously
feel completely unqualified to lead this team, but it is clearly a place God
has me in for a reason. So please pray that I will be listening to God and
seeking His direction for the team. I pray that God will use me in this
position for His glory. Pray that God will show us clear ways to promote safety
on the team and true community that simply seeks the face of God.

Colossians 3:12-14

 ¹² Put
on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate
hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, ¹³ bearing
with one another and, if one has a complaint against
another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also
must forgive. ¹⁴And
above all these put on love, which binds everything together
in perfect harmony. 

Romans 12: 9-13

⁹ Let love be genuine. Abhor what
is evil; hold fast to what is good. ¹⁰ Love
one another with brotherly affection. Outdo
one another in showing honor. ¹¹Do not be slothful
in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. ¹²
Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in
prayer. ¹³ Contribute to the needs of the saints
and seek to show hospitality.

Luke 14:26-27

²⁶ “If anyone comes to me and does
not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and
sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. ²⁷ Whoever does not bear his own cross
and come after me cannot be my disciple.