Nepal Blog 1
When I think of Nepal, often images of mountains and snow covered peaks come to mind. As a matter of fact, Nepal is one of the most mountainous countries on earth: home of Mt. Everest and dozens of other impressive peaks. So when we arrived in Kathmandu about a week ago, and were shortly after informed that my team would be going seven hours south to the jungle, it’s needless to say that I was more than surprised. I was actually filled with a feeling of disappointment, and even frustration. After spending a month in India, where my body became accustomed to continual sweating, I was more than ready to enjoy some cool mountain air, and the amenities available in a larger city. But life and God have a funny way of throwing us curve balls, especially when we have expectations.
As world racers you are continually informed that we should not have expectations, because things on the field have a way of turning out drastically different than originally planned. However, being myself, I still have expectations and even assumptions such as, if we are going to Nepal we will surely be staying in the mountains. Unfortunately, just as it is on the race, when we have expectations of things going a certain way in our daily lives, we are often disappointed or angry when they don’t. This can be a tough thing for us as Americans, because we are almost programmed to have our expectations fulfilled. When we go to the store, we expect what we need to be there; if we go to a restaurant, we expect what we order to come to us as we ordered it, and when it doesn’t we may even lash out.
Nepal has taught me that when I am faced with the choice between giving up my expectations and going with the flow, or choosing to stay upset with the situation because my plans fall through, it is always better to give up my right of expectation, and instead just roll with it. This is difficult to do at times, but I feel that it allows God to have room to carry us through these situations, no matter how miniscule they may seem in hindsight. God has a strange way in which he grows us as individuals, but for this process to begin, we must relinquish some of ourselves and our expectations to him so that he has room to move within us.
I say all this because life is often about the choices we make: we can choose to expect, to assume, and in turn to be disappointed, or we can do something a bit different, and just trust God and relax into whatever situation we’re in. This like all things is a process, one that takes time and work, but by taking the first step of trusting in God and relinquishing some of our expectations we will be starting down a new path that leads to a healthier happier life, and a better relationship with our Father in heaven .
Thank you for reading. I hope you take something from this, and like always, feel free to leave a comment.
I am still desperately in need of funds to continue my work on The World Race. If you feel led to donate you can do so by clicking the “support me” link on the left side of the page, or by contacting me personally.
My email is: [email protected]
Sincerely,
Garrett Hammonds
