Last weekend the team had the privilege of having Brian & Melanie Stark from International Teams NZ, come and spend their Saturday with us! We spent the day out at Big Bay. The sun was out and we had a gorgeous spot just a step away from the beach! (many thanks to the Ocklestons for letting us use their place.)
The day was focused on team-building, so Brian & Mel lead us in a number of activities that forced us to work together! In the first - we had to get all 10 of our team members across the 'burning lava pit' using only 9 blocks of wood. The catch? A part of a team members body had to be touching the wood pieces at all times, otherwise it would burn up in the hot lava!
In the second, we had to carry a ball on top a piece of plastic pipe without it dropping from the beach into the living room, using 16 strings coming out of the pipe & everyone holding one of the strings. (Kinda hard to explain...check out the picture at the top!)
Then when we sat down to lunch, there was also a catch! Both our hands were tied to the person next to us...It made for a much more difficult meal!
But through all three activities, we learnt huge lessons about working together, listening to one another, and lots of other things we will be able to put into practice while on this mission trip, as Brian & Mel debriefed with us.
In the afternoon Brian made us each do a personality test! We found out why some of the team love to talk...they're otters, why some tend to be super organised...beavers, and why some like to retreat to sleep...golden retrievers :) It was really interesting and lots of fun! But it was also a great insight into each member of the team and what we can expect from them on this trip.
Also throughout the day, we heard testimonies from each of the team members, we spent some time reading God's word and praying for one another.
It was a really fun day! And if it's anything to go by, I think we have a fun few weeks in store for us on this trip!
