Training Camp!

Training camp has been a blur; full of long hours, but fast days. Every day felt long while living in it, but looking back it all flew by.

Days were full of worship, sermons, community, fellowship, training for the field, and so much more. Although the days have felt busy and non-stop, I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to come, unplug, and become more intimate with my new team, and with the Lord.

There have been so many highlights to these past 2 weeks; my favorite of them all being an all-nighter as a squad. We were assigned a certain amount of hours to stay up and pray, but most of our team ended up staying awake all night! The Lord moved in mighty ways through this and we all felt the presence of Holy Spirit throughout the night. We began by praying over the campus and our trip, eventually laying hands on each and every member of our group and praying for them personally. Altogether, we prayed from 11pm to 6am! We ended that time worshipping with a group from Bethel Music in California…it was so amazing. Our Lord is “El Shaddai,” “The All-Sufficient One” or “Sustainer.” He sustained me while staying up for 42 hours straight! So why would I doubt Him in any aspect of life?

Another amazing thing at camp was the worship and sermons! It felt great to constantly be poured into by not only the speakers or the worship team, but also the other students who heard the word and were obedient in what the Lord was telling them to do. Prayer among all the squads broke out frequently; praying within our own squads, as well as praying for members of other squads. God moved in these services. He spoke, He gave visions, He gave words, He gave healing, and so much more! God is so good!!!

A final thing we did at Training Camp was a hike up Georgia’s Mt. Yonah. It was 2.3 miles of STRAIGHT UPHILL!! It was brutal, but sooooo worth it! The views were magical, and the time spent bonding with the team was amazing as well. We all carried up our packs, tents, and firewood in order to spend the night on the top of the mountain. We roasted hot dogs for dinner, and some off us went and sat at the edge of the mountain after dinner and played guitar while singing. I will never forget this night. It was one of the best nights I’ve ever had. After we slept through the night (kind of…the boys had 10 in our tent), we got up bright and early at 5am to start the hike back down. Although it was dark and cold, it was still one of the most peaceful things I’ve ever done. I love spending time in God’s creation, and feeling his peace through it all.

Now we’re off the Spain to hike El Camino de Santiago de Compostela for 2 weeks. Meanwhile, we’re praying hard for the Lord to reveal our next destination to us. Talk to you all soon!

-Hudson Mercado