In the beginning, there was training camp... Let's just say that had I been to the great state of Georgia before, I might have been somewhat more prepared. The idea of the whole week was mass discomfort. Our whole group (of 41 + leaders) came from very different, very lavish (in our first world) homes and were joined together in agony; 3 girls to a 2 man tent, absolutely no flushing toilets of any kind, no electricity for blow dryers, lap tops or straight irons, no mirrors to run to in distress and no time to rest from the last activity. I do believe that after surviving that week, I can do anything! The worst part of all were the fire ants! Georgia has its many revered intricacies including but not limited to, its gorgeous red clay that clings to your clothing for a lifetime and of course my favorite, the nasty fire ants that bite you and leave a bump which so far, has not begun to diminish. It's okay, though, it was all for a purpose. It definitely sounds really cool to be a missionary in Africa, some people might even claim to be jealous. Training camp firmly wiped away all the myths about what a glorious time we might have. 

 

Our team was given assignments that might last for up to 2 hours, impossible tasks were given, people were tested and tested again. Our lessons were extensive and then we would practice them. My faith was tested as were my illusions. I don't know if I'd ever been so busy before. We woke up, lined up for breakfast, had a lesson, went to our first team builder, broke for lunch, had another team builder and some free time, (where I was put to the challenge by hanging out with some hard-core runners) and then we lined up for dinner. After that might have been dishes if it was your turn, or worship which lasted longer than any worship service I've ever been to! Again, we were challenged to take action, to step outside of our comfort zones. Thank the Lord, they gave us a day off before we were due at the airport. We had time (much needed time) to rest before our 2 days straight of flying. Then for those 2 days, most of us didn't rest at all. 

 

What I will remember most of all from that week of training and torment (other than the hoses that qualified as showers)  is how much we prayed. I always thought, "pray when you want to, if you feel so inclined." Not so! Pray as often as you can is more like it. We prayed for everything, for everyone. We prayed bold prayers, impossible requests, we challenged ourselves and we expected things from God. It was a new experience for me. Devotional time was mandatory every morning and reading the Bible was necessary. After awhile, we got attached to the way things were run there. It was almost sad to leave, but we were off to Africa and we couldn't wait. It was a good start to what's going to be a very long, very tiring, very rewarding 8 months!

 

Over and out.