This week, hear from World Race: Gap Year participant Grace Harang on what life has looked like on our Gainesville, Georgia campus!
Our World Race: Gap Year participants have been on campus training and growing closer to God and their community. Next week, they will head to Louisiana to partner with Samaritan’s Purse in disaster relief efforts, then will launch overseas to serve with strategic ministry partners! Follow along the journey!
Wow, it has already been four weeks here in Georgia! Just over four weeks ago, I stumbled off the jet that carried me from Alaska to the opposite corner of the country. With a sore butt and excited heart, my 36 squadmates and I set up our tents in the woods at the Adventures in Missions (AIM) campus in Gainesville, Georgia.
Since arriving, we have been learning a lot in our daily sessions, playing games together, and growing into a Christ-centered community. Each day looks a little differently, but we follow a tight schedule which usually includes 3 meals (don’t worry, mom), an afternoon and evening session where we are taught by a speaker, team time, free time, and devotional time.
Here, I will outline what a typical day in the life of a World Race: Gap Year Racer at Training Camp!
6:00 AM – I wake up and crawl out of my tent, batting away spiders and other bugs trying to invade my hair and home, and make my way to my secret spot in the woods. I spend about two hours with God as the birds test their morning voices and the ants begin their daily investigating. This means studying Scripture and journaling my thoughts and feelings.
8:00 AM – Breakfast! I bought both hot sauce and a jumbo jar of peanut butter that I use to ‘spice up’ our breakfasts.
9:00 AM – An hour to spend with God in any way we want. I am getting to know the Creator of the mountains, the sea, and the Creator of me so much more intimately than ever before. I usually spend this hour praying for my family back home and for my new family here.
10:00 AM – Morning session! A different speaker has two hours to teach us various important topics! So far, some things I have learned about include different cultural perspectives around the world, how to listen, the history of missions (and how not to repeat the ugly parts), and mental health! These are some awesome learning times!
12:00 PM – By the end of that, we are usually hungry so we gather to pray for lunch! I love meals because it is a time to talk to my squadmates and laugh around the table. After lunch is free time for 2 hours, where we can usually be found playing board games, napping in our tents, and taking walks in the woods!
3:00 PM – We reconvene after free time to do an hour of activity. Some days it’s a workout, some days its fundraising, or it could be other things like squad dance parties!
4:00 PM – Afternoon session! We all sit and take notes from a speaker. The last few were about student leadership tools and how to take responsibility for our actions.
5:00 PM – Ah, one of my favorite times of the day. Dinner! The sun is beginning to get low, and we all eat food prepared by the incredible kitchen crew! I love how our whole squad takes turns serving each other every meal.
6:00 PM – With our bellies full and our hearts happy, we separate into our teams of 5 with our team leaders (alumni from last year) and process and talk about different things from the day. I will be spending the whole time on the field with these specific girls doing ministry together, so we are all bonding and preparing to do life together!
One of my favorite things about our days here is that we don’t have our phones for the day. I have seen how that invites a kind of raw, distraction-free community and intentionality with each other that is so fruitful!
And there you have it; thank you so much for reading! I am enjoying my days here, but I am so eager to be on the field!
A Christian gap year is an opportunity to intentionally discover more of God, yourself, and your calling. World Race: Gap Year is a 9-month Christian gap year program of Adventures in Missions that allows you to serve missionary bases and ministry partners in 3 different countries. But it’s much more than that!
