Living with 18 other women was one of the aspects of the trip that I was most apprehensive about. Will we get along? What if I don’t like anyone? How will all our talents mesh and work together?
I’ve been pleasantly surprised and I now want to live in the way team does with everyone in my life. We have built a community that encourages one another to be more Christ-like and supports each other in everything we do.
One thing I love in particular is that, at the end of day, we all come together for team time. We start with out by praying together and then have time to give each other constructive or encouraging feedback that we observed from that day. For example, if one of my teammates exhibited great patience with the children that day or I’ve noticed that they have been growing in an aspect of their faith, I would point that instance out and encourage them to keep it up. On the flip side, if someone was lacking in an area, such as often being late for work, meals, or team time, I would tell them what I observed and give a suggestion for how she could better honor those around her by being punctual. While uncomfortable, it’s also awesome to have a group of Godly woman who are keeping me accountable to living out a Christ-like life and call me higher towards him.
After that, depending on the day, we’ll do a Bible study, worship, team building activity, game, someone will share their story, reflect on the day etc. I love coming together with the people who I’m most close with so that we can all refocus on God’s purpose for us here and build up one other. That may be what I miss most is that we have a structured time for building our team stronger and offering ways we can improve.
I also enjoy having 18 sisters 24/7 to talk to, play games with, pray with, and read the Bible with who share the same objective: know God and make him known. 18 of us, all with the same vision but each so different. I love getting know each one and see their gifts and talents shine. Somehow, even though we’re all from different parts of the country and are all different, we get along and mesh well together. Not only that but we support each other well. When someone is sick, people check up on them constantly. If something is going on at home, we talk about it, pray about it, and hug it out; we’ve got each other’s backs.
I also love having team leaders. They set the example, they are reliable, they’re automatic friends/moms. Their job is to support the team and help everyone along their journey of faith. Every other week, we have one on one meetings with one of the leaders to check in on how we’re doing. We talk about what God is doing in our lives, if we have questions, concerns, if they can help keep us accountable in an area of our lives, and how they can be praying for us. My favorite part is how intentional they are with their relationships. Our interactions are focused and we are able to accomplish much in a short amount of time.
I will miss my 17 new sisters. We kill tarantulas for each other, we laugh uncontrollably, we watch sunsets together, we scrub toilets together, and, most importantly, we encourage one another to run well the race set before us and get to see each other grow in our journeys of faith.
