Dearly Loved: And then there were six

In the spring of 2007, I began leading Young Life at Waynesboro High School. I know, I know... old news! What is not old news is the incredible group of people I have been so blessed to walk beside (and behind and in front of) through this journey. This beautiful community has included roommates, friends, high schoolers and their families, and countless others, seen and unseen who have stood by us, fought for us, and loved us over the years. However, it is one particular group that who inspires this post... my team.

When I joined team Waynesboro March of '07, it consisted of only two members: Dave and Jamie. They welcomed me with whoops and hollers and open arms as their first female teammate... and then there were three.

It has been rare for us to take a "team pic" (especially one to be proud of); but I am grateful for the record we do have of team Waynesboro over the years-

Year one:

Year one was full of new experiences, frustrations, and triumphs as the three of us learned to love each other and lead together. There were many times that my poor guys looked at each other and me in utter confusion as more (overwhelmed) tears streamed down my face. (Let's just say they weren't used to me yet and I wasn't used to them! haha!) But God continued to bless us and produce fruit through our ministry- both visible and invisible.

And then in his infinite wisdom, God gave us another very tangible blessing in the form of my teammate Nichole... and then there were four.

(Here's a little taste of what this fun group was like from the start-)

Year two:

(Our "team spot" became Crozet pizza and these pictures were taken at the railroad tracks close by.)

Year three flew by in a glorious blur. We did not gain or lose any teammates during year three, but God used the four of us and stretched us and bonded us in ways we could not have foreseen or expected- during year three we became a family.

Then year four came.

As my roommates in college would have said (and yes, back then it would have driven me crazy)- shambles.

Not shambles in a bad way, but in an unexpected way that was hard for me to adjust to for a long time (and yes, still is from time to time).

In the spring of 2010 our family began to change.

In March, we welcomed two new teammates onto our team- Wil and Abby.

On May 10th, 2010, Dave got married (and from day one we were all convinced that there is not a more perfect woman on this earth for him to spend the rest of his life with).

And Alison Blanco joined our family.

Then in July of 2010 another big change occurred.

Jamie married the beautiful Carolyn.

And Jamie left our family. (God called him to a wonderful ministry in Fredericksburg, VA- but that doesn't make us miss him or feel his absence any less in Waynesboro!!)

This weekend we had our annual Campaigner Christmas party on Friday and our Leadership Christmas party on Sunday (with lots of photo opps)- our team looks drastically different from the way it looked 4 years ago when we began this journey. But we know that the God we serve is faithful and has placed each of us where he wants us for the single purpose of doing his good and perfect will.

Year 4: