There are things about community that scares me. Things like sharing thoughts and feelings with perfect strangers, showing my weakness, asking for help, and looking like a complete and total crazy person in front of people I don't know. For me all of those things are really really hard, and yet here I am a known survivor of the ever popular "welcome week" 

Welcome week is a week long retreat for CGA apprentices to spend time getting to know one another, processing the last season that we were in, playing insane games together, and have so much fun your side hurts from laughter. 

I went in with my head held down. Afraid that I had somehow lost a sense of who I was. I came out on the other side with my head a little higher than it was and with my heart full of so much love for total strangers. 

We sang songs, danced, cried, and learned about how intricately unique we all are. It was the best week ever! I was able to piece together some of the things that I love about other people and myself that come directly from the Lord. 

Now it is time to get to work! Soon we will find out where we will be apprenticing and we will start learning in our tracks. 

This is the season to take ownership of who I am in Christ. To seek out the things that I want and give it all i've got.