So here I am, one month into my three month trip, and I’m finally coming into an acceptance of things I’ve known in my head for a long time.
Christians toss around a lot of terms, sayings, and truths that really don’t hold a lot of value until it is lived out and truly understood.
“God loves you.”
This is something I’ve been told since I was born. This is something we toss around all the time. But something I was never able to accept and fully understand until coming here.
Actually something I wasn’t able to accept until quite recently.
He doesn’t just love me, He LOVES me. I don’t have to do anything, I don’t have to change who I am, I don’t have to pretend to be anything that He hasn’t made me to be. When I begin to accept the love He has for me, I’ll naturally change because I’ll begin to desire the things He desires. And I’ll be able to tell people “God loves you” and show them the same love I have come to accept.
“You need a relationship with God.”
I need a relationship with God? Ok. Well, I’m a christian and God knows everything, so if I pray and ask for some things, and He answers that prayer. Now it’s a two way street. Boom. Relationship.
Well, no. Actually, He wants me to talk to Him. Like tell Him about my day. Thank Him for good things. Explain my frustrations. Tell Him how cool He is. Get mad at Him on occasion.
And then He wants to talk back. He wants to tell me how much he cares. He wants to give me encouragement. He wants to explain things I don’t understand. He wants to have conversations.
It doesn’t look how I expected it to look, I don’t hear a voice in my head. I don’t always know what He is saying right away. But he never lets me down when I need Him.
“He has great plans for your life.”
This is something that always made me really mad. I don’t even want to do something huge with my life. And if He has great plans for me, why don’t I know about them? What could he possibly do with my life? When does this “great plan” start? Well it started. It started when I stepped out in faith and applied to go to Kenya. It started when I let go of my plans and let Him take control. I put my schooling, my relationships, my family and everything I have ever known aside and did what He told me to do. Was is scary? Yes. Is it hard? Super. Is it worth it? Totally.
I’m here in the Sodom and Gomorrah of Africa making a difference and starting a ministry that has already changed lives. I’m in the most beautiful place I’ve ever been and He’s blessed me so much. I’m here learning things that have completely changed the course of my life. I’m here completely ready to keep stepping out in faith and letting Him lead me into the unknown.
Alright, so there is a whole lot more that I’ve learned. There is a whole lot more that I need to learn. God has so much more to accomplish in the next two months. And I’m so excited for it. I’m excited for our relationship to get stronger. I’m excited to see more miracles. I’m excited to pour out God’s love to people. I’m excited to step into all the things He has for me and for the people we come into contact with. Because he has great plans for my life.
