Training Camp Update

Welcome back to my blog! I have been at training camp in Georgia for the past two weeks, so I figured I would make a little update about by time here. On August 29th, my parents and I drove to Gainesville, Georgia to drop me off. We got to the Adventures in Missions campus and immediately I went to go set up my tent. I was lowkey surprised that I would be sleeping in my tent the first night, but I did. I reunited with my mom and dad for worship and woah was it interesting. The worship here is different than I’ve ever really seen before, but I have learned to love some parts of it. Something I was very anxious about during worship was what other people were doing. I had to realize that the way I worship God is all that matters and to not focus on the other people around me. That night, my parents prayed over me and it was definitely uncomfortable for me. I had never been prayed over like that, but that is the norm here. I’ve come to figure out how crazy prayer is. Prayer unites us so well especially when we do it over each other. So after worship, I said goodbye to my parents for the night, but I would see them in the morning. That first night in my tent was brutal. It was so uncomfortable, I was very hot, and I could not find a comfortable position to sleep in. I was genuinely concerned about my sleep for the next few weeks being here. Even though tent life is hard, I’m used to it now, and it’s livable. The next day I said goodbye to my parents and I don’t think it hit me that we were saying goodbye till a week or so later. The next few days were just a huge shock for me as the beliefs, worship, and teachings were very different. It really took lots of courage and willingness to be open to new things. I think being away from home hit me the most after our first Revival night. I went into Revival night so nervous, not knowing what to expect. It was a lot of extreme worship, and preaching. In that moment, I felt so alone because everyone around me was worshiping their hearts out and was just standing around, not knowing what to do. I missed my IPC church family so much. I missed our service, my dad preaching, and especially our hymns. I was struggling because I felt like I was in a place where I knew nothing. My parents, friends, and Cammie and Grace weren’t there. It was hard, but I managed to push through and I prayed about it. I have made so many close friends while being here, and it’s only been two weeks. I am so excited to see how my friendships strengthen over these next 9 months. I have been mentally, physically, and spiritually challenged during this time, and it had been hard. However, I’m glad that I’m being challenged because it makes me so excited to see what God has joyfully put in store for me next. I will be leaving next Saturday for Black Mountain, North Carolina to do some domestic mission work. We will be doing hurricane relief work which I am so excited for, especially since I did some of that in June with IPC. I am also overjoyed to be going back to Black Mountain, because that is my happy place. I cannot to share about what I will be doing over there. I will then leave for Columbia on October 4th. I am counting down the days till I get to be on the field. I am looking forward to continuing my blogs weekly once I get to Columbia. I will also be posting pictures every now and again on my Instagram page.                                                  My username is jess_walking_byfaith

Thank y’all so much for taking the time to walk with me while I’m on this mission!