hey friends, 

I apologize for the recent time of absence. Adjusting and trying to find time to write is difficult, but that is no excuse. Thank you for your patience! Without further ado the first 5 weeks of my race, aka Training Camp. 

Where to even begin! PHEW let’s just say the 5 words I’d describe these weeks are mold, mud, discomfort, joy, and trust. 

Training Camp is located at the Adventure in Missions base in Gainesville, GA. It’s the same place that Boot Camp was, but this time there’s no coming home after 5 days…this was it. These 30+ people are our new family for the next 9 months. We have to learn the art selflessness, trust, and the pursuit of unity within days. The prosperity of our squad is our choice, and we have to choose it every morning. 

Its so simple, yes, it seems that way, but some people who thrive off of alone time, there is none. Those who don’t like to branch out of a small group of people, you don‘t get the option to not be around everybody. If you are slow at making friends, it’s a very lonely process even being surrounded by people all the time. You become very comfortable being uncomfortable, and emotionally and mentally stretched. 

Alongside feeling overwhelmed or alienated socially, the natural elements seemed to be attacking us as well. Georgia rain and clay were our worst enemies. At training camp we hand washed our clothes and hung them out to dry, we slept in tents in the woods, we used porta-potties, walked everywhere in the orange dirt. There was so much room for disaster and yes there was disaster. 

Lets talk about the miniature flood of Training camp which lead to the infamous mold outbreak. As racers we live out of a back pack and have very minimum amounts of clothing or supplies, and when it rains for consecutive days our tenets mold, our tents flood, we can’t wash clothes, the orange clay turns muddy and stains our clothes. We spent one Saturday scrubbing everything with white vinegar (I had food poisoning so I didn’t). 

You would think the squads spirit would be crushed. You would think everybody would’ve regretted the decision we made to go on the race, but no. We helped one another, danced and sang cleaning, we shared tents and cared for each other as brothers and sisters. 

The Lord provided us with the hands and hearts to get through the physical hardships, and that was just scratching the surface of all the things my squad and I was attacked with. I can’t tell you the amount of times the Enemy spiritually bludgeoned each one of us in a new way. Theres been tears, joy, loneliness, laughing, etc. 

The race is not for the faint of heart, it is not for those who don‘t want to grow, and it’s not for those who aren’t ready to lose everything surviving on the name of Jesus. 

It is a pleasure to be in the season I am in.