Years ago, I would have told you that I hated team building activities. The awkwardness, the way some of them are so “on the nose” and cliché, the vulnerability it requests for a group of people who probably don’t know each other well. It’s just so…ick.
So, it’s funny that I happened to be a director for a grant for the last five years that required me to spend a whole day with students every summer doing team building at the 4-H Vines Center in Little Rock. But as it happens, it did become easier, and I did begin to (dare I say) enjoy it? What changed?
Each year, the students changed, but our activity leaders stayed the same. I started to get to know these leaders, learning about their values, interests, and expertise, and I truly trusted them by the end. In the first years of the program, I tried to figure out exactly what we would be expected to do so that I could mentally prepare. By the end, I didn’t wonder about the details, but I knew Taylor and David were going to put together a good day for us.
I’m in no way comparing my experience with team building to God calling Abram, but I do think I read this biblical story a little differently now. We aren’t privy to the conversation or the thoughts Abram had when God called him to leave his family and environment, but it required immediate and continued trust. Let’s talk about how and why we trust God’s promises, what it costs us, and what it costs God.
– Jennifer and the teaching team
Text:
Scripture: Genesis 12:1-9, Matthew 28:19-20
Lord’s Prayer
Christ, who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who’ve sinned against us.
Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory forever. Amen.
