Goodbye MTI

The ripping has started. And every time it happens I can hear it audibly like the ripping of plant roots when you transplant them. I was praying that in the last week of training that they would back down a step and yet if feel like they did the exact opposite and stepped up the training to a new intensity. On Monday we went over singleness issues and how singles fit into the work team. A lot of it was good for me and my team because what was talked about where things that just happen because... well... i don't know that's just the way it has always been and so i never thought much of it. But it made us really think of all the expectations and assumptions people have towards singles. ex: they have more time they don't have kids, they can handle more responsibility they only have to worry about themselves. etc...etc... when really they can get overloaded and burdened trying to take on everything they are dealing with and everything people are trying to dump on them because they have all this "extra" time and energy. On Tues. (i think) they put half of us (about 20) into a 5x5x4 box and we went through a simulation that we where missionaries hiding from people who where trying to kill us. So we sat/stood (whatever we could to get as comfortable as possible) for 5...10...min. then we where asked if we would accept strangers into our safe place not knowing who they where or if they worked for the enemy. if we did not accept them in they would be killed and if we did we could end up dead from a leak in the group. would we take them? Then 15...20min a plane was there to take 5 people to safely who would get to go (the mothers of young of course) then 25...30min we could only save 3 people who where we going to tell they had to now stay? (During all this time it was very hot we where in the boiler room so it was very HOT and the air was getting very stuffy) The enemy then found our safe place and where keeping us hostage. Then at about the 1 hour mark we got our final question. the negotiations have fallen through and they are executing 2 people who are we going to choose to execute? at that point we are all so tired and hot and miserable that we are very emotional so with this question my first thought was this is my family I am not going to send them out to be killed. When they came back they ended up grabbing 4 guys instead of 2 to execute and there was real gun shot (sounds) and it was all very emotional. This simulation could be a very real situation for some of those i was training with. And that there was a good possibility that there where missionaries in that position right now and to always remember to pray for them. For the first 2.5 weeks of this training I feel like I have been torn open and all the deep parts of my heart have been probed through making me deal with everything that i was trying to hide or push aside. I was feeling very exposed and vulnerable. Then on the last 2 days I don't know how they did it but they blessed us and prayed over us so many times and in such a way that leaving Friday morning i felt completely whole and refreshed. It was amazing. Thursday we prayed around the world and each family got up and explained where they where going. what they would be doing, and how we could pray for there host country and themselves personally then we got up and prayed over them. Its was an amazing time. Friday morning the ripping started as we had to say goodbye to our MTI family as they left for the airport or started there drive home. As of Sunday night i got my first email from Brent (the first one of us out) who landed inLebanon safely and will start his work there so please pray for him. I hope you all have a most Wonderful week. I love you. Be blessed and be a blessing.
-Erin-