Welcome back to week two of the J Squad Journal! Hear what the squad has been up to this week and how God has been moving. 

We just finished two weeks of ministry in Black Mountain, North Carolina. We were welcomed by Excel College, where we set up our tents on their front lawn for the two weeks. They invited us to their events and even into their homes. We felt so loved and welcomed by them and the special community that they have there.   After training camp, I wrote a blog about daily life in Gainsville, Georgia. I thought it wou...

Something that we practice while on the race is Sabbath rest: a day set aside with no work. This is something that I haven't put into practice and am still growing in. What I do know is that after six days of creating, God rested. The Bible says that "God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it [he] rested from all his work that he had done in creation" (Gen. 2:3, ESV). I believe that God, being who h...

On Sunday, we arrived in North Carolina and set up camp. I have learned so far that tenting in North Carolina is much much colder than tenting in Georgia. While it is a bit chilly at night, I am grateful for my sleeping bag and a tent buddy to keep the tent warmer. Before leaving, I was a bit sad to miss fall, my favorite season. I love the cooler temperatures, jeans and sweaters, and the beautiful leaves as they cha...

Yesterday we officially completed training camp; tomorrow, we leave for ministry! This morning we said a bittersweet goodbye to the guys on our squad. I am so excited about all they will do in Kentucky, working with Samaritans Purse for two weeks, but sad that our squad will be slit up. Us girls are leaving for North Carolina tomorrow morning to serve the community of Black Mountain in as many ways as we can. Before ...

When we think of worship, we think of singing songs that give God glory. I know that for a lot of years, that's what I thought worship was. I have heard that worship is more than just singing; I am just now learning what that means. Worship is expressing adoration to God and giving him glory. Singing is a form of worship, but we can be in a constant state of worship as we go through our daily lives. No matter how ...

I have been at training camp for almost two weeks. I wanted to share two short stories of times that I have encountered the Lord as I handwash my clothes, break bread with new friends, worship, take bucket showers, and dive into Scripture.   What I Needed, When I Needed It: On Tuesday and Thursday mornings, we have group workouts at 6:30. The first Tuesday, I had a very stressful morning of oversleeping and ...

Something that most people don't know about me is that I have been on a mission to handwrite the Bible. This started four years ago, in my sophomore year of high school, when a teacher and mentor allowed the class to handwrite some of the prophets in place of the final exam. When I started this, it was because I didn't want to take the exam. Come to find out, the final exam would have been much easier but much less f...

As I have been talking to people about what I will be doing, I have been asked, "What do you expect to get out of this experience?" multiple times. Before I was considering doing the World Race, I had been reflecting on my freshman year of college, specifically my class designed for students who are undecided on their major. Going into the class, I expected that I would leave the class having chosen my major. At the ...

I have recently been thinking about patience and I realized that there are many areas of my life that require a great deal of patience. As a sailing instructor teaching middle schoolers how to sail, there are times that my patience is tested. Usually, when I tell people that I work with middle schoolers seven hours a day, they wish me luck, but I have learned to love them and embrace the stage of life that they are i...