T.I.A. as a Student Nurse: 04/26/13

"To fall in love with God is the greatest romance,

to seek him the greatest adventure,

and to find Him the greatest achievement."

I recently came upon this quote by Augustine. I read it over numerous times before I really came to terms as to what it really meant for me... Our journey with Christ is an unending adventure, when we really fall in love with him, desire his will for our life, and truly seek to please him we are relentlessly giving up all that we desire to embark on this adventure with him. Letting go of all our selfish wants and needs and actively choosing to follow His path for us--even if that means taking a leap of faith or a new direction we didn't originally have planned for ourselves. Before I left for South Africa I prayed that The Lord would grow my passions and dreams so that I could see more clearly His will for me. What a mistake I made in asking for such a profound thing...
Over these past 3 weeks our entire group has spent time traveling around the cape of South Africa, exploring some of the most beautiful cities and beaches in the world, and embarking on some of the craziest/scariest/I cannot believe I just did that- adventures I will probably ever experience in this lifetime. (Bungee-jumping, shark cage diving, and hiking one of the 7 world wonders.. Just to name a few) And yet as I begin to reflect on my time here it's not any one of those moments that stand out as "significant". They were incredible moments where I looked around in awe, saw the beauty of the Father's creation, and overcame some of my deepest fears, but they were still somewhat insignificant. They only lasted a moment, had no affect on anyone but myself, and held no real importance in my growth or proclamation of Christ's kingdom. The moments that still continue to weigh on me, the ones that press upon my heart from day to day were my encounters with God's people, both hurting and healthy, in laughter and in tears. It was in those moments when I held the hands of the little children, cleaning the wounds of HIV patients, and being invited into people's homes who have near to nothing that I found Christ's love surrounding me in every way. It was during my time spent in the community unable to communicate through language but still praying aloud with one another knowing that we were still speaking to the same God and that He is sovereign and understands all things. It was the days when we walked miles through the townships in the blistering heat just to pray, sing, and dance with the people that I thanked The Lord for this crazy adventure. These moments, these precious moments flood my mind and break my heart. They are the love and adventure that I sought out and that The Lord so specifically brought to me during my time here. They are where I found Christ to be the most alive and real. They were the most significant. This is my achievement in finding Him. As I continue seeking him I can only pray that my adventure with Him will grow me as his servant and make me fall more in love with Him each and every day.
In exactly one week I will be leaving South Africa and starting the next piece of my journey in Malawi. I cant even begin to dream of or imagine the ways The Lord is going to continue growing me, molding me, and drawing me to his kingdom. May my love for him only increase, my adventure be unending, and my achievements in Him continually be met.