Gnarly changes in the GY23 life of Lindsey

Hello everyone! It has been almost three weeks since I left home and I thought it was about time I shared a little about what has been happening. Things have been a little crazy. So many things changed so quickly. My first week after I left was our training camp at the AIM campus in Georgia. It was such an exhausting but special first week with the squad. It was crazy to meet everyone and know that even though they were complete strangers, they were going to be a kind of family to me for the next 6 months. That first week we did everything in the same room. Training session, meals, team games and sleeping all happened in the same space. 

 

The night before we intended to leave for Nicaragua we were all so joyful and excited. Very last minute however, we learned that the early morning flight would not be happening because of Covid exposure. It was disappointing for a bit but the following day was filled with so much encouragement and “make the best out of anything” attitudes that I just got all the more excited for the time I will have with this team. I’ve got mad respect for the people I’m with. They responded to disappointment with optimism instead of complaints. We are truly learning to live with open hands. We are getting comfortable with just rolling with whatever happens and trusting that God has plans and works greater than ours. When things got cancelled we realized for what wouldn’t be the first time that we had no idea what was going to happen or where we were going to be by the end of the day. We weren’t sure where we were going to be for the next 6 months for that matter. 

 

What ended up happening was we were sent to a campground that used to be an old church camp type of facility (I think? We didn’t really know). We spent the next 10 day quarantining there. We made the best of our time with more lessons and time spent in teams getting to know each other better. We were mainly waiting to find out what was going to happen. After living out of port-a-potties and twenty-four seven being spent in one room with 30 people, the personal space the new living space gave felt like such a luxury. We each had a room and bathroom that we shared with one other person from our teams. I’m truly am incredibly grateful for the time we had in Georgia. I was initially disappointed when plans changed but I saw countless good things come from that time we had together as a squad. Every day I found myself grateful to God for the community of people around me. These are some GUD people. 

 

A few days before we were going to leave for Nicaragua we had another big change. Nicaragua had closed it boarders. We weren’t going. But now I’m in Costa Rica! Like what? Not only that, but the ministry my group is working with right now is an absolute dream. I’ll be sharing more about what we have been doing and where we are staying soon. So nothing has gone as planned. That doesn’t surprise me but it still has been pretty gnarly not knowing what the heck is going on. At no point have I been discontent though. I just want to work to be mindful that God is going to work in ways I never could plan out. I want to absorb and learn from whatever happens and serve however God is calling me to serve.