All Squad Month: Ecuador

I’m not sure when I found out that Month 2, Ecuador, was going to be All Squad Month, but I do know from the point I found out about it, I was pretty much dreading it. Sticking me in one place with 57 other people for an entire month sounded like cruel and unusual punishment to me. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy being around people and meeting new people, but I prefer to do so in smaller doses than 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Needless to say, I did not have the best attitude going into it and I thought it would just be a month that I would just try and do my best to get through. 

One of the major things we were taught going into All Squad Month was the importance of one-on-ones and the value of getting to know our squadmates’ stories. One-on-ones seemed much more manageable to me than a large group setting, and so I began making a list of different people who I felt like I should have one-on-ones with. However, one of my favorite things about All Squad Month ended up being the situations where I ended up having a one-on-one just because we were at the same table for dinner or we were in the same van headed somewhere or we just happened to have gone on the same hike. It was nothing I had planned and yet I got to know people that I hadn’t necessarily planned on getting to know. I realized pretty quickly that God saw my list and he didn’t really care about it. He was going to lead me to who he wanted me to get to know and I could tackle my plans on my own time. It was and is such a powerful thing just getting to hear someone’s testimony and beginning to have that understanding of where they come from, why they are here, and who they really are. When someone drops their walls and tells you everything about their life and vice versa, it is just such an awesome experience and you can’t help but feel closer to that person afterwards. I was prepared to sit down and have these various structured one-on-ones, and yet the one-on-ones never went how I planned, thankfully, because God’s plans are better than my plans. I would get frustrated when my plans didn’t work out, and yet every single time, the situation turned out better than I ever could have imagined.

The other one of my favorite things from All Squad Month was just the opportunity to learn from the 56 people around me. I have always tried to keep the mindset that I can and should learn something from every single person that I come across in my life. With 56 people around me at all times, it was a golden opportunity to learn by speaking with, listening to, or even just observing others. For example, I really love watching my squadmates who enjoy leading worship because they get so into it, and it’s so clear the impact it has on their relationship with God. For me, worship can still feel like a chore at times, and so I enjoy seeing an example of where I want to get to in that area of my life. Another example would just be my squadmates who have such a wonderful understanding of the Bible. I just listen to them and hear their knowledge and wisdom and can’t help but want the same thing! In fact, this encouraged me to begin taking online Bible courses which has been such a wonderful opportunity to learn! It is very interesting to see all the different gifts that people bring to the table and how it all fits together in one squad, and I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to grow because of it.

In conclusion, All Squad Month was not torture, but rather it was a chance to see the value and the ample learning opportunities that a large group can bring. That’s not to say the whole month was super easy and everything was great, but the positives that came from it far outweighed the negatives despite my initial reaction. If I had to sum up what I learned this month in one sentence it would be this… My plan going astray is the best thing that can happen, because where my plan ends, God’s can begin!