Yesterday was my last day of domestic ministry before heading back to training camp this morning for a mini debrief until Wednesday. And after that, I’ll finally be heading to Greece!

But let me tell you, domestic ministry did not go the way I expected.

Last Sunday, we left training camp and headed to Camp Adrian in Georgia, where we would spend the week serving and working alongside the camp staff. Adventures in Missions, which is what the World Race is a part of, has been helping renovate parts of the dorms and dining hall to better serve the people who will come here in the future.

We were divided into different teams and given different jobs. Some of us painted, some replaced carpet, some cleaned trails, and others worked on trim and other renovation projects. It sounded pretty straightforward.

But, of course, God had a few unexpected lessons planned for us first.

As the last half of our squad was getting ready to pack the van and leave, we found out that one of our tires had popped. And unfortunately, the spare tire wasn’t usable either.

So instead of leaving on time, 13 of us girls and two squad leaders ended up watching a movie together while we waited.

At first, it was frustrating because we just wanted to get to Camp Adrian and get started. But looking back, I can see how God used that delay for good. We got to rest, laugh, and bond with one another. For a little while, it almost felt like we were back at home watching a movie with friends.

Eventually, we were able to leave and arrived at Camp Adrian around 9:30 that night. After a three-hour car ride, we were all exhausted, so we quickly settled into our dorm full of bunk beds and went to sleep, ready to start serving the next morning.

Or at least, that was the plan. The next day, we discovered that our dorm had bed bugs. And unfortunately, I had 23 bites, and they were causing a pretty bad allergic reaction.

I was overwhelmed by the itching, burning, and pain, but I tried to persevere through the day. I took Benadryl, used Benadryl cream, and hoped that after moving into a new dorm and drying all of our belongings, I would be able to get a good night of sleep and wake up feeling better.

Thankfully, Camp Adrian responded quickly and took care of the problem immediately. Administration and an exterminator worked to make sure the bed bugs were gone, so thankfully, there are no longer any bed bugs!

But my reaction to the bites was another story.

When I woke up the next morning after a restless night, my leg felt like it was on fire. One of the bites had started turning into a blister, and because of how painful it was, I became really concerned.

After talking with my parents and leaders, I finally decided to go to urgent care. And honestly, that was a really hard decision for me. I cried a lot. For the first time since starting this journey, I genuinely wanted to quit. I wanted to go home. I wanted my mom and dad. I wanted to be comfortable. I wanted someone else to take care of me. And for a moment, the thought of leaving the World Race and going home felt so much easier than continuing.

But God met me there.

I was able to get prescriptions from the doctor that helped tremendously with the pain and itching. I still have the bites and a blister, but thankfully, they no longer bother me nearly as much as they did before.

Still, the whole situation meant that I missed some of the ministry and serving, and my team was already feeling a little disorganized because two of my other teammates had gotten sick.

And then that sickness started spreading through our squad. Suddenly, working, serving, and doing ministry became even harder. We were tired. We were uncomfortable. We were sick. And we were trying to continue serving anyway.

Then came the final big struggle of the week.

Someone on our squad got lice. I will never forget looking around at the faces of my squadmates when we heard the news. I could see the weariness and uncertainty in everyone's expressions. It felt like we had already dealt with so much. What else could possibly happen? Thankfully, no one else ended up getting lice, and that situation was taken care of as well.

When I look back over this past week, I realize that domestic ministry taught me much more than how to paint walls, replace carpet, clean trails, or do trim work.

God taught me about suffering, perseverance, finding the good, and trusting Him when things don't go according to plan.

Camp Adrian is such a wonderful place to serve. Every leader I met was incredibly kind and helpful. They guided us in our jobs, fed us three delicious and filling meals every day, and even gave us free time to enjoy their pool and slip-and-slide.

The work we did, the worship we gave to the Lord, and the conversations we had with one another were all such huge blessings.

And even though our week was filled with bed bugs, sickness, lice, exhaustion, and unexpected changes, God was still moving. He was still good. He was still sovereign. And He was still in control.

One of the first people I thought of when reflecting on this week was Job. Job experienced suffering on a level that I cannot even begin to compare to my own. He lost his livestock, his servants, his home, and his children. He experienced tremendous physical suffering as well. Yet in the middle of all of it, Job still recognized who God was.

Job 1:21 says:

“‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised!’”

And later, in Job 2:10, Job says:

“He replied, ‘You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?’ In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.”

Job suffered greatly, but he still knew that God was good, God was sovereign, and God remained faithful. Obviously, I am not comparing my 23 bug bites and sickness to everything Job endured. But I think there is something important for me to learn from his response. Do I only trust God when things are going well? Do I praise Him when I am comfortable, healthy, and happy, but become discouraged when things become difficult? Or can I continue to trust Him when I am hurting, exhausted, uncomfortable, and unsure of what is going to happen next? This week gave me a very practical opportunity to learn that lesson.

I also had a dream one night that I should read 1 Peter 4 and 5 before writing this blog. So I did, and I was amazed by how much it spoke directly into what our squad had just experienced. I won’t write all of the passages here, but I really encourage you to go read 1 Peter 4 and 5 for yourself. Verses 1–2, 12–19, and 5:8–10 especially stood out to me.

1 Peter 5:8–9 says:

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”

These verses reminded me that we have a real enemy who wants to discourage, distract, and destroy. And after the week we had, it was hard not to wonder if some of what we experienced was spiritual opposition.

We are preparing to go into the nations and share the Good News of Jesus. Of course, we should expect opposition. But something I have to remember is that the enemy is not sovereign. God is. Nothing that happened this week was outside of God's control. The tire didn't surprise Him. The bed bugs didn't surprise Him. My allergic reaction didn't surprise Him. The sickness didn't surprise Him. The lice didn't surprise Him.

And none of it was powerful enough to stop what God wanted to do through our squad. That is such an important lesson for me to learn before leaving the country.

Because if I am being honest, the bed bugs almost broke me. When I was in so much pain and itching, I genuinely wanted to run home and forget about the whole trip. I wanted comfort. I wanted my family. I wanted to be somewhere familiar where I knew exactly what to expect.

But through conversations with my parents and my leaders, and through conviction from the Lord, I realized that part of what God is teaching me on this trip is how to be uncomfortable. I have never left my family for this long. I have never traveled this far. I have never done many of the things I am about to do.

So of course there are going to be moments when I feel uncomfortable. There are going to be moments when I am tired. There are going to be moments when I am homesick. There are going to be moments when I don't know what I am doing. And there are probably going to be moments when I desperately want to go back to what feels safe and familiar.

But maybe those moments aren't failures. Maybe God can use them to grow me. I can't grow if I never step outside of my comfort zone. I can't learn to trust God with everything if I always stay where I feel safe. And I limit what God can do in me when I refuse to let Him stretch me.

I'm slowly learning that I wasn't called to the World Race simply to travel the world. I was called to share Jesus. I am called to love people. I am called to serve. I am called to pray. I am called to be obedient to the Holy Spirit wherever He leads me.

And that calling doesn't only apply when I'm in another country. It applies when I'm serving at Camp Adrian. It applies when I'm sitting next to someone who is hurting. It applies when I'm praying for someone in a Walmart. It applies when I'm having a conversation with a stranger. It applies everywhere I go.

I am called to be a minister for Christ wherever God has placed me. And because this world is not the Kingdom of God, following Jesus is going to make me uncomfortable sometimes.

I am learning how to live boldly for Jesus. I am learning how to persevere when things don't go according to my plans. I am learning that suffering does not mean God has abandoned me. And I am learning that discomfort does not mean I am in the wrong place.

Sometimes, discomfort is exactly where God wants to meet me and teach me something I couldn't have learned anywhere else. So as domestic ministry comes to an end, I am incredibly grateful for this week. Not because it was easy. It definitely wasn't. But because God used every unexpected situation to teach me something. The tire taught me patience. The bed bugs taught me perseverance. The sickness taught me dependence. The lice taught me that I really can laugh in the middle of chaos. And all of it taught me that God is still good when things are hard.

If this is what domestic ministry looked like, I can only imagine what the next nine months will hold. But I don't have to know. I just have to trust the One who does.

This morning, I'm heading back to training camp for our mini debrief before we leave for Greece. Our World Race journey is finally moving into the next stage, and I know there will be many more challenges ahead. There will probably be more moments when I am uncomfortable. There will probably be more moments when I am tired, homesick, frustrated, or afraid. But now I have another reminder that God is bigger than all of it. He is sovereign. He is good. He is faithful. And He is with me through every single part of this journey.

Thank you so much to everyone who has been praying for me and my team. I appreciate your prayers more than you will ever know!

As we head back to training camp and prepare to leave for Greece, I would specifically ask you to pray for:

• Health and safety as we travel back to training camp and then fly to Greece next week.

• Unity and restoration as we debrief our week of domestic ministry and continue growing together as a squad.

• Perseverance and boldness as we enter this next part of the World Race and face whatever challenges come our way.

• Protection from spiritual opposition, but even more importantly, that we would remember that God is sovereign and that nothing can stop His plans.

• Open hearts within our squad to allow God to stretch, challenge, and transform us into whatever He wants us to become.

• The people we will meet in Greece, that their hearts would be open to Jesus and that the Holy Spirit would work through every conversation, relationship, and ministry opportunity.

Thank you for continuing to walk alongside me through all of this. Domestic ministry definitely wasn't what I expected. But maybe that's the point. I'm learning that following Jesus isn't about knowing exactly what is going to happen.

It's about trusting Him when I don't. And now, I'm ready to see what He does next.