We are now in Kigali, Rwanda and have been showered with
love, embraced into a family so willing to serve and open their home to
us. I am staying with two teams for the
beginning of this month and we are helping with various ministries including
speaking in churches and sharing messages with women in a sewing class that are
all either former victims of human trafficking, HIV patients or widowed. It
seems as though this month will be a challenging one, but so great for personal
growth in my spirituality with the Lord.
I’m looking forward to getting to build relationships with the people of
Rwanda!
(A picture of us waiting for our bus to an African wedding!)
This blog has no particular flow or direction, but I figured
I would share one thing that has been on my heart for the last couple of
months. Something the Lord has been
challenging me with is the idea of pursuing others. We started the Race as a bunch of strangers,
each sold out for the Cause of Christ, to serve the nations and share the love
of Jesus. What a great thing to have in
common, right?! But, we so easily forget
how hard it is to truly pursue one another, loving one another as Christ has
loved us.
One thing they talked about at training camp is the
community we would learn to live with on the Race, but the reality of actually
living in it is much different than a series of power points. It’s easy to get caught up doing your own
thing, worrying about your own life, concentrating on what you’re going to do
next, what God is teaching you, and the like.
It’s harder to open your heart to mutual vulnerability, placing your
focus on building deeper relationships with the people around you, but what
we’ve all found pretty quickly, is that on the Race, there is no escaping
it! When you live, breathe, eat, sleep,
dance, cry, laugh and do everything else together, you realize that building a
healthy community takes not only hard work, but a willing heart and a selfless
desire to do whatever it takes to make it through the highs and the lows
together.
For me, community has been one of the most challenging, yet beautiful
aspects of the Race. Because of the last
6 years of being in school and living on my own, I’ve sometimes struggled with pursing
those around me to the extent that we are called to pursue as Christ followers. Not only does this apply to my brothers and
sisters on the World Race, but I’ve also found that my relationships with people
of the nations, and my family and friends back home, tend to be surface
level. Digging in and diving deep with
strangers has always been somewhat perplexing to me. Many thoughts cross my mind…
What if they don’t
want anything to do with me? What if
they think I’m weird? What if they push
me away so hard it hurts? What if they
find out who I really am and deny me?
I started to think about how Christ pursues us, even before
we know Him. Even when we are so far
away from Him or ignore Him, even when we deny Him and push Him away in our
lives, He STILL tries with all His might to pursue us. He doesn’t force anything, nor does He ignore
us, but He loves us too much to leave us stranded and unchanged.
He has given us the
free will to choose our response to Him, but whether or not we deny His
pursuit, nothing will stop Him from trying to capture our hearts.
My heart smiles when I think about this. As I reflect on God’s character and the way
in which He draws us into relationship with Him, I’m reminded of how much better
I can be in loving and drawing closer to those around me.
As Christ followers, we all fall short of the glory of
God. We will never be perfect, but we
can strive to reflect Jesus Christ. If
we are called to resemble Christ as a follower of Jesus, then this must mean
that we, too, must strive to pursue others as Christ pursues us. Even when someone denies us, wants nothing to
do with us, or is angry with us, we must make every effort to respond with the
same amount of grace, love and genuine concern that God, Himself, extends to
us.
I desire to be a woman of honor to those around me. I desire to be a person that wholeheartedly
pursues my brothers and sisters in Christ, not out of obligation, but out of a
willing, relentless and honest heart. I
desire to grow deeper in my relationships, not just knowing what one’s favorite
color and hobbies are, but about their dreams, life experiences, deepest fears
and hopes. Every moment I spend with
someone, I pray that it does not go wasted.
I desire to be a woman of intentional love, striving to pursue others as
Christ would pursue them.
Without
holding back due to the crippling fear of being hurt or known, I am committing myself to
shadow Christ, learning to dive into my relationships without hesitation,
regardless of one’s response to me.
And ultimately, above all, I am committing myself to pursue Christ as He pursues me.
Now, my question to you is, have you pursued/loved others and God to
the best of your ability? What can you
commit yourself to for the next month that will help your relationships with others and with Him, grow
deeper?
Join me! 🙂
***I’m still in need of $1,030 and am past my original deadline! I have been blessed with an extension, but it’s quickly approaching and I am at risk of being sent home! Any amount helps! If you choose to partner with me, you can utilize my support me tab to the left! THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS!
