LTM Training and Meet My Team

I’m currently in Gainesville, GA for Long Term Missions training.  I flew in on the 17th of September and made it just in time for Scott and Christina Kwak’s wedding.  It was the union of two of my friends AND the day I got to meet my little team of 3 that will be living with me in Cambodia.

The Nepal Team, Cambodia Team, and our Leadership Team (as well as our team mascot, Chippy the Dog), at our final destination on the AT, Neels Gap

That same day our team left for the Chattahoochee National Forest for our first week of training.  We focused on building team trust and team culture, by doing high and low ropes courses, hiking 13 miles on the AT, and going rock climbing.  Needless to say, I LOVED it all!  I was ready to spend some time away from emails and live with the trees and my new friends, it was very “life-bringing” for me.  We spent time processing our testimonies with each other, learning about our different Meyers Briggs, and spending some time with Jesus.  I walked away from that time feeling pretty well bonded with my team and thankful for the women the Lord chose to work alongside me in Siem Reap.

This is my team:

Kristie Reville  21 year-old from Augusta, Georgia  

Just finished the Center for Global Action’s Mission Tract and is passionate about women’s ministry. She is going to be our Beauty for Ashes Coordinator at the base and heading up our ministry for women caught up in prostitution.

 

Kelsey Beggs   29 year-old from Muleshoe, Texas

Did the race in July 2014 and The Fellowship at Adventures in Missions in Fall of 2015, with the Logistics  Department.  Kelsey will be in charge of the guesthouse operations, finances, and guest logistics. 

 

Emily Butterfield   29 year-old from Kalamazoo, Michigan 

Did the race in August of 2011 and Squad Led the second Fusion Squad in 2016.  I will be the Base  Leader of Overflow Guesthouse and in charge of leading the vision, driving the business, inter-ministry  partnerships, and short-term team logistics.  

 

We are in our third week of training, out of five.  We’ve had loads of classroom time, covering topics like Biblical foundations for global ministry, previous missionaries and missions history, ethnocentrism, cultural burnout/fatigue, self-care, different world views and cultural beliefs/values/behaviors, martyrdom, and how to avoid hurting other countries and economies with external aid.  We also spent four days with over 300 World Race Alumni at the Awakening Conference and spent six days in the woods with our team, which I mentioned earlier.  

We are spending this week in Clarkston and have the opportunity to live with a refugee family from Burma.  Clarkston was named the “most diverse square mile in America”, by Times Magazine.  There are 60 different countries represented here and over 110 different dialects spoken.  We are partnering with a local church and using their facilities as a classroom in the mornings, then going out into the community during the afternoons to meet with locals, hear their stories, learn about different cultures, and practice living out the Gospel in a cross-cultural context.  Granted, all of us have done the race or have had some sort of missions experience already, but it’s different going into this knowing you will be MOVING abroad for the next two years.  This has been a really interesting experience so far and I’m learning a lot!

Thank you for all of the support that has been coming in so far!  I have been blown away by the generosity and encouragement of my friends and family!  However, in order to launch to Cambodia this January, I still need quite a few more monthly supporters!  If you are looking for a missionary to support or a ministry to invest in, I would love to partner with you!  

If you’d like to do a one-time donation or become a monthly supporter, you can do so here!