I began my first week at the Center for Global Action by going on a three night, electronic free hiking trip with the other apprentices. I was skeptical at first about spending so much time in the woods with seven other people that I did not yet know. After driving for a couple of hours to our starting point and being loaded down with gear and food, our journey began. It started off pretty expectedly, with me tripping over a raised tree root and crashing on the trail. After laughing it off, we continued to hike for a couple more hours until we came to our site for the night. After a very close run in with a snake and an overly aggressive spider, I hunkered down under the tarp for the night.
The next morning we hiked into the mountains of South Carolina for seven more miles and just when I thought I wouldn’t be able to go farther, we reached our campsite, where we played two amazing games of Fishbowl that I will never forget. The next morning, our solo day began, where we split off to different campsites for twenty-four hours alone. This is the point where the hike went from a fun trip to a wild encounter with God. I had been desperate for months to be able to hear His voice like I had become accustomed to during my time in Africa. And a few hours into my day alone, I was so overcome with peace about my landing in Georgia, right where I am meant to be at the perfect time. We all came back to Georgia the next afternoon, and while I had a great time, I discovered that I don’t love hiking and camping to the extent that I thought i would.
Our teams all came back together to reconnect and share about our experiences throughout the interns. Being a part of an organization that wants the start of our time here to be a one on one God encounter is so phenomenal. The next few months hold so much promise for my development with God and I cannot wait to sprint into every arena that He sends me to. It will be difficult (and, from what I have seen so far, will be beyond stressful sometimes) but I could not choose a more positive, uplifting and humorous community to have the honor to spend this next semester with.
All my love,
Aimee
“What can I do for You, what can I bring for You, what kind of song would You like me to sing? ‘Cause I’ll dance a dance for You, pour out my love for You, what can I do for You beautiful king?”- A Little Longer, Bethel Music
