I don’t think any combination of words can truly describe my experience at DiscipleTrek, but I know that I took something home from those three weeks. It took ten and a half hours to get there, ten and a half hours to get back—but what an adventure in between!
The first week struck us with cold and rainy weather and a lot of us got sick, but I think that really brought us closer as a group! No one likes to suffer alone, after all. In that time we got to meet and quickly grow to love our first speaker, Kaleigh Benge. We’re all her children now, fyi.
The second week was pretty perfect in my opinion. We were feeling great. The weather was beautiful. Our speaker, Dee Casper, was so incredibly knowledgeable. And at the end of the week, we were in charge of services at a local church. I helped with the song service and children's story. Everything was received well and the members told us we were welcome back any time!
The third week seemed to fly by. Our spirits were high, and every Bible study that Jordan Reichart led was filled with information that almost always blew my mind. I got sick at the end of this week, but it didn’t dampen my mood. There were a lot of tears as we said goodbye and drove away.
I’ve never been more blessed in a gathering of believers. Our days were full: Our guest speakers presented for one hour twice a day on theology and Bible principles; in the first week, we were honored to have Paul Lehmann and his wife lead us in team building exercises. Josh Guerrero taught classes on small group Bible study, equipping us with the basic and easy tools necessary to dive into the Word; an event we called TrekFire gave us the time to put our skills and newfound knowledge into practice; and let’s not forget the meals! They were delicious!
We laughed together. We cried together. We became a family in those short few weeks. Many testimonies were shared, and it was beautiful to see how God was uniquely working in all of our lives.
I have to say my eyes were opened on a certain subject: the Bible. Every day, I struggle with devoting time to reading my Bible. I come back refreshed every time I sit down and read, but it’s slow going to start. But now I see the Bible in a different light. DiscipleTrek taught me that the Bible is not a lullaby. Instead, it is a resounding shout. And that shout is a declaration of love, and victory over sin. Jesus is coming soon!
To tell you the truth, I almost didn’t go. Life was pulling at me from all directions, and I couldn’t see any possible way I could make time for a three week trip to South Dakota. But it tugged at my heart, and I wasn’t able to push it out of my mind. The deadline came, and the next day I began to worry. I missed this opportunity, I thought. So I prayed and submitted an application and decided if it was accepted past due date, I would go.
So God made it happen. And I’m so thankful He did.
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