It’s amazing how the Lord provides exactly what I need when I need it.
This past week has been full of stress, rushing around and just trying to keep up with those around me. I left India this past Friday and then Saturday through Sunday night was full of hectic travel. When we finally arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal for debrief I was looking forward to a time of rest and relaxation but it turned into the complete opposite. I was trying to catch up on all the fun things the rest of my squad was doing before we arrived, catching up with all the amazing shopping and restaurants and just enjoy being in such a cool city! By the end of debrief I was exhausted, worn out and sick…I did not take care of myself and rest in the way I needed.
I pushed through the sickness and exhaustion on my way to Pokhara. I just needed to reach the next goal. I felt like I just had my head above water and that I was just surviving…how could I feel almost burnt out month 2??
Then the Lord provided exactly what I needed when I needed it through the Himliaya mountains. The Lord knew I needed rest, peaceful surroundings, nature filled moments and screnery that makes your mouth drop open. He knew I needed this before I knew I needed it.
The Lord has been teaching me over the past year different ways in how I find true rest in Him. After spending over a month living with 60 people, I needed the time to just be still and rest in His presence. I am so thankful that He provided that today and I was open to that provision. I am becoming more and more passionate about the Sabbath and how we need to take this day seriously. The Lord made it a commandement for a reason. Taking the Sabbath today as a true day of rest in a way that I enjoyed was yet another way the Lord drew me closer to Him. This rest can look different for different people. It can be playing soccer with the locals, laying in your hammock, playing guitar or hiking up to your secret spot. We just need to remember to keep the Lord at the center of all that we do.
I was reading through Luke Chapter 6 and interestingly enough it talks about the Sabbath and how Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath! “One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grain fields, and his disciples began t pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernals. 2 Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” 3 Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 4 He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 5 Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”
Keep the Lord at the center. Pray to keep the Lord at the center. He wants us to rest in Him and grow closer to Him.
This month I am at a Yak Ranch in the Himalaya mountains of Nepal. My surroundings are ones that I have only seen on postcards and Instagram. I walk out my door to the 10th tallest mountain in the world, the purest water I have ever tasted, and a quietness that you can only experience in a mountain range. This is type of lifestyle that I believe that my heart has been craving. I love the rustic and simple life. Let’s see how long how I will last realistically with a squatty potty, a shower every few days and no wifi. Despite those things intianlly sounding negative, as I type them out they excite me! My mind, body and heart finally feel rested and ready to take on what God has in store for this month.
