I never heard much about this so called "training camp" that AIM does. I wasn't told anything about what we would be doing or what the goal of it was so being the human that I am I made up my own ideas and goals for training camp. They were the following:
1. Get to know my team
2. Get to know the area of the Philippines and what exactly we'd be doing there.
On the first day, we were showed to our cabins and then told "Go pick 3 items that you would keep with you for the rest of the night. So I brought my sleeping bag, my pillow and my bible. Then we were told "No cabins for you, you get to make your own shelter out of two tarps for you and your team tonight." EXCUSE ME…was all I kept saying in my head. My team and I survived the night.
We were told next about doing a surrender walk. Our instructions were as followed: Get a log and write down everything you want God forgive us of, so that's what I did. After my leader prayed over me I began to walk.
I had this super long, semi-thick stick that I just didn't know how to carry. Seriously, it was my size. I tried carrying it in my arms but it just became an inconvience. I tried using it as a walking stick but that just caused me to trip and fall because my stick kept getting stuck places. So I tried carrying it across my shoulders. While the stick itself wasn't very heavy, the longer it sits on your shoulders, the heavier it becomes. I then began to cry. God gave me the revalation that this is what I do to my problems. I tend to just throw my baggage on my back thinking that eventually it will disappear. But the baggage just becomes heavier the longer it sits there.
For me, this training camp wasn't so much about getting to know my team or the Philippines (which did happen by the the way) but it was more about me learning to let go.
All I'm trying to do now is to expect the unexpected.
Much Love,
B
