Today is a celebrated day in America, we call it black Friday. Today we squeeze into long lines and wait anxiously to have the chance to get the best deals on the newest items. As I read the news this morning I viewed stories on everything from estimated waiting time at the local Target, to stories of rage and trampling by innocent bystanders. This is America. In seven months my life is going to change drastically. I am trading in everything that I know for something totally different.
I live in the north side of Atlanta, Georgia. This part of town is known for its wealth. It is not uncommon to see soccer mom’s driving Maserati’s instead of mini-vans. Extreme wealth is so common for me that not much materially surprises me anymore. This is what I am used to, living in one of the richest areas, in the richest Country in the History of the World.
Over the past five years I have had the privilege to travel to three continents that are very different from my own. In Africa I was exposed to exuberant joy in the midst of poverty. In Asia I witnessed underground believers who could be punished for studying the Bible. In Haiti I began to see what pain really looked like. In Guatemala I saw the hope of Christ transform the lives of hundreds.
I am changed. This change is altering me and refining me. I have started seeing the world and the people around me differently. I am still on this journey today and I pray that I will always be on it. The journey I am speaking of is a constant refining to look more like my savior. To see people and the world as he does. To get a glimpse of creation through His eyes.
