Welcome to the third annual Reflect on and Prepare for challenge, and one of the most anticipated challenges each year! In this challenge you will do just that: reflect on your cross-cultural life in 2021 and prepare for 2022.

If you’re new to this challenge, it is a 16 page packet designed specifically for cross-cultural workers to Reflect on 2021 and Prepare for 2022. While your initial reaction might be, “2021 has been a bit of a nightmare, and I’d rather not look back, thank you very much!” I’m reminded of this comment made at one of the parties last year: “I’m so glad I did this packet because I thought all of 2020 was awful and marked by loss. This packet allowed me to record the hard parts and see that it wasn’t all awful. There was some good.”

Sometimes when a year is all jumbled together inside of our heads, hearts, and souls, whatever is on the top of the pile is all that we can see. Sorting—aka reflecting and preparing—can help you to see gems or heartaches that you might miss because they are buried at the bottom.

This challenge will help you and the Lord reflect on 2021 and plan and dream for 2022. It is specifically designed for Christian cross-cultural workers like you. 

When you join, you will be sent a 16 page reflection packet. 

1. Print it out, transfer questions to a notebook, or type your answers directly into the document—whatever works best for you.

2.  Mark your calendar for January 5 or January 12 to join a party and discuss your completed (or partially completed!) packet. You will be sent a zoom link for the parties where you can interact with others who have also completed this packet and win prizes. The parties will be 7:00–8:00 a.m. MST, 1:00–2:00 p.m. MST and 4:00–5:00 p.m. MST on January 5 and January 12.

3.  Spend time with God, your spouse, or a close friend working through this packet.

Know that the Global Trellis team is praying for you in the days ahead and looking forward to hearing about how God met you in this challenge. We’ve also got some surprises planned, so stay tuned and invite other cross-cultural workers to join in the fun!