scotland w golf summer 2024 - team story
august 28, 2024
saturday, sunday, & monday
we landed in edinburgh on saturday afternoon, and drove to saint andrews. we met up with andrea and mary in the dunvegan, retired collegiate coaches who have been mentors for shannon and prayer warriors for our team. it was special getting to connect with them through impactful conversations and meet their sweet friends sheena and bobby. while sitting in the dunvegan chatting with them, they introduced us to many different people providing even more opportunities to connect. we realized that, while we were so far from home, the lord didn’t fail to give us many “small-world” moments. it’s amazing how god brought us to the birthplace of golf, surrounded us by so many golf legends, and allowed us to enjoy time of fellowship with them.
on sunday morning, we headed to north berwick’s wee course to serve at the cree medal. this was a junior tournament, and we were there to walk with the kids as they played, give advice, teach them about on course ettiequte, and help with rules questions. we were able to spend a lot of time getting to know the kids and their individual stories. it was refreshing to watch the kids have fun and enjoy the game we all love. watching the parents love on their kids and support them no matter what score they shot reminded us of how god delights in us everyday, no matter what. on sunday night we spent time of worship with jill and andrew mitchell, our trip hosts, and additionally were joined by andrea and mary who made the trek from st. andrews to carberry. it was a special time where each of us were able to just sit in the lord’s presence, as andrew sang worship songs and guided us through song and reflection. it truly filled our souls.
on monday we began the two junior golf camps, where we are serving all week. we were greeted with a rainbow on the horizon shoreline, a constant reminder of god’s faithfulness. the morning camp was held in a common recreational park, providing greater public access for kids. it was sweet to encourage the kids and be a light to them, and in return, be encouraged as we saw the kids filled with joy and excited to become better at the game. at the afternoon camp, almost 30 girls attended! this was empowering for girl’s golf and special for us to act as mentors to them. we were told that last year only 8 girls were signed up for this afternoon camp. through this incredible jump in attendance, we realized that god is so much bigger than just our own lives and is working across the globe!
to finish off the day, we were able to walk alongside a few of the county girls at north berwick who also served with us at the afternoon camp. while we got to play with them, it was more special getting to know them. by the end of the day, our total rainbow count seen was up to 8! one of which was a double rainbow arching across the middle of the west links of north berwick.
tuesday & wednesday
on tuesday, we continued working the two golf camps, one in the morning with mostly boys and the other being with all girls in the afternoon. we began the first camp with a fun, competitive agility warmup. it was an obstacle course with a tic-tac-toe board at the end. two groups would face off against each other and race to see who could win. katya was participating in this warmup game and when sliding to make a move on the board for her team, she badly sprained her ankle. this accident caused her to have to sit out for over half of the morning camp. she opened up about how this allowed her, as an active helper in the camps, to step back and watch the other girls work with the kids. this opened her eyes to how truly sweet and meaningful these camps are and how she could truly see god working and shining through the team and their actions. she was able to get around for the rest of the day, and this incident and new insight made her even more grateful to be apart of this mission trip.
midday on tuesday, we had another incoming freshman, asitha ashok, join us. she is from the uk and was able to meet us here and serve with us for a few days. it was so sweet to get to know her and also serve alongside her. it was a small world when we learned that katy, the north berrick assistant teaching pro who is running the afternoon camp, was also one of asitha’s golf coaches last summer for the scottish golf team. asitha shared, it was mutually really great to spend the last few days together, especially on her side of the pond.
at the camps, we led the group through some of our team drills that focused on speed control, green reading accuracy, and hitting the ball on line. the kids played some team competition games and showed a lot of team camaraderie, and it was fun to see how seriously they took it and wanted to improve their skills. it was special to us because the kids became more comfortable around us and we were able to deepen our connections with them. bridget named that she felt like she got an inside look into some of the girls lives and got to know them on a more personal level as they shared more with her about their interests and life. bridget said, “even though we live in two different countries, this helped me see how big god is and how he is working across the globe.”
on wednesday morning, katya led a devo with the team about how god is the servant king. in the van ride to the morning camp, shannon had mentioned to the team how we she knows that we all may be tired due to jet lag, and that she sympathizes with that, but we should try to leave each day on empty by giving your all at these camps for these junior golfers. this idea reminded katya of a devotional she had completed previously, “who is god? the servant king.” in this devo, katya talked about how although god is almighty and all holy, he is never too tired, or too good, or too above us to serve us. he is the servant king. during this devotional, she focused on the verses phillipians 2:6-11. these state,
"who, being in very nature god, did not consider equality with god something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross. therefore god exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that jesus christ is lord, to the glory of god the father.”
as christians, we are called to be reflections of christ and live with him as our example. katya asked her team to think about this as we worked the camps and lean into jesus’s servant heart and embody it.
this message from katya really made an impression on our team, and it inspired us through the day. wednesday afternoon was the final camp session with the all girls camp at north berrwick. we were sad to have that time come to a close because we all were having so much fun with the girls at the camp. we played a texas scramble with the girls and helped them with on course management through the par 3 holes. at the end, we gave out the bison award (a fuzzy bison head cover) which highlighted the camper who most consistently showed kindness and positivity to everyone. following that, we also gave all the campers a special ball mark we had custom made for our trip. this ball mark is blue and white like the scottish flag with lipscomb golf on one side and special logo that teammate, lauren thompson illustrated for the trip. it is a crown encircling two golf clubs, which to us, represents his lordship in our lives. shannon shared with the campers how her faith was impacted through a tough time when she was a kid and that it was through the community of sports that helped her cope with her mom’s cancer.
it fills us with joy to know that the connections we made with the girls at the camp have become long lasting friendships. some of the girls made us bracelets, shortbread, and even wrote thank you notes. these were tangible pieces of evidence for us that we made a real impact at this camp.
on wednesday night, bridget closed out a great day with a devo about how everyone’s relationship with god looks different, and that is okay. she explained how we can only find strength and hope from god. this sparked a beautiful conversation amongst the group and we vulnerably shared faith experiences in our lives and encouraged each other of god’s sovereignty, faithfulness, presence, and love for us.
this trip has already been incredible and we are excited for the final few days here. thank you for your prayers!
thursday & friday
on thursday, the morning camp began a ryder cup tournament. the kids were split into two teams: europe vs usa. it was a great morning filled with fun competition and sweet teamsmanship. jane, the golf instructor and leader of the camp, brought her two mini yorkies, bella and cher. they were our “team mascots” and we had fun loving on them. jane has been a golf instructor for a long time and shared her wisdom with us about how she teaches the kids. her spirit is kind and her passion for teaching junior golfers is inspiring. also, she graciously gave us each replicas of the oldest golf ball models and an old wooden club as a gift of gratitude for our time spent with her and the kids at camp. kate is the other leader of this camp. she works for the council in developing junior golf in the area we have been serving. we were blessed by her kindness towards us as well. it is so refreshing to each of us to see the game growing here and how excited jane and kate were for us to be a part of it.
later that afternoon, we met with phil and john, two maintenance men at carberry, and served on the grounds with them. we picked up big sticks around the property that got in the way of the lawnmower, weeded and deadheaded roses in the garden, cleaned windows, and dusted spiderwebs. it was sweet to get to know phil and john and listen to their stories. they are both very passionate about their work at carberry, which encouraged and reminded each of us the importance of being good stewards of our gifts. phil explained to us how the “lord & lady” expressions in britian were those who had been knighted by the queen, and received land as a gift. this reminded us of how throughout scripture, god has also issued his children the promise land. as daughters of the king, we too can live knowing that we are chosen and have great inheritance.
on friday morning, mariana shared a devo on her favorite bible verse, 1 corinthians 10:31:
“so whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of god.”
this verse makes her feel more at peace in everything she does, for example at golf tournaments or any nervous environments. mariana said she doesn’t have to worry because she knows that she is living for god’s approval, not man’s, and god is always with her. she also shared how getting sick in the beginning of the week helped her grow and seek peace from the lord. this changed mariana’s perspective for the rest of the week and made her even more grateful to be able be back with us and serve the rest of the week.
friday was our final day of camp and we continued the ryder cup. team europe came away with the win, and it was a joy to watch them celebrate their victory. we enjoyed the rest of our time playing putting competitions and even some futbol. it was sad to say goodbye because we had built such good connections with the kids. it is crazy to think we had only spent a total of two hours a day with these kids, but were able to build such good friendships with them. it is clear that god has been at work all week, and doing something greater.
after camp on friday, we traveled to saint andrews and marveled in the beauty of the course and the history of golf. it was special to go to a place where so many greats had played. we were able to walk through the world golf museum, it was super neat to see how golf has evolved over the past 200 years! later that evening our trip hosts, jill and andrew invited us over to their home to spend time with them. we discussed the highlights of the trip and how we have seen god through it all. it is always a joy spending time with them, enjoying rich conversation, and learning from their wisdom. jill prayed over us for the rest of our time in scotland, which blessed us deeply.
we are grateful for the time we have had here!
saturday & sunday
on saturday morning shannon led us through a devo reflecting on the week, and discussing the throne of our lives. she asked the question, “who is on the throne of your life?” it is easy to put ourselves on the throne and ask god to bless it, rather than give him the throne, surrender everything to him, and follow his will over our own. it is a gift that he invites us into what he is doing. he doesn’t need us to accomplish his will, however out of his love for us, he wants to partner with us and use us. this was a sweet devo time to have on our final day and take with us as we return to our normal everyday lives.
during the day we served at the malcom cup, another junior tournament at the wee course. this tournament starts off with 9 holes of stroke play, and then cuts the field to eight players, finishing the competition with match play. the match play portion started with four head to head matches in a bracket until the final match battled it out for first place. we walked alongside the groups as caddies and rules officials. additionally, we were allowed to give advice and just spend time talking with the kids. this event was another example of how accessible, exciting, and fun golf is in scotland for juniors, which was refreshing for us to see.
in the final match, there was quite a gallery of kids watching. the whole tournament took almost 5 hours to complete. some of the kids had not made the cut, which means they stuck around for 4 hours to support their peers. this was a picture of how god celebrates us, and also calls us to live. there is a fullness of joy that comes when celebrating those around us. while talking with the parents, we learned that many of these kids do not go to school together and only know each other from golf. it is these events that bring the kids together and creates long lasting friendships. we noticed such a sweet community of kids in the east lothian area that play golf together everyday and support each other so well. we are thankful we got to share this past week together with them.
later saturday night we went to the carberry chapel with jill and andrew. this was a special time of worship, prayer, and reflection over the week. andrew encouraged us in many things, but the main takeaway was the truth that there is no ceiling in encountering god. we can hear from him daily, and there is always room to go deeper. the deeper we go with god, the more we can offer others through him. it is important to know jesus intimately ourselves so that the our lives can reflect him. we encountered this through jill and andrew, they are living role models of this and we are so grateful to know them and learn from them. both jill and andrew truly have a gift for stimulating deep conversation and asking questions that brings awareness to how god is working in our hearts. their fire for the lord is contagious.
while reflecting on the week, it is clear how present god has been. through the rainbows, connections to hometowns, interactions with various people, and whispers of the spirit to each of us individually, we have lots of takeaways. one of the biggest ones is that we are royalty. this is special language we have used all week in hopes to reach people by connecting the government structure of the united kingdom. jesus is king and we are all his children. therefore, we are all royalty, and have been graciously given an eternal inheritance. we are god’s beloved. his love is greater for us than we can ever imagine. we cannot do anything to earn it, or anything to lose it. he delights in us just “being.”
our final morning on sunday, we each picked out a rock and gave it a word to explain the week. the words were beloved, gratitude, just be, planted, and encouraged. we left a rock in the garden, and brought one home with us. the combination of these words is a great summary of the week. we feel thankful for the opportunity to be a part of what god is doing in scotland. even greater, we are thankful for the way that the lord has worked in each of our hearts, and are excited to return to nashville with full hearts, refreshed minds, and overflowing spirits.
we appreciate your support and prayers this week!
mary kate, mariana, bridget, and katya
not a trip
category: student life
tags: lipscomb missions, missions, brisbane, summer team