Presents. It’s something many of us love. It’s something about the unknown that brings curiosity. It’s something about the heart behind a gift that makes you feel loved. It’s the thought put into the overall present that makes it that much more meaningful. What if I were to tell you that life was a gift? That each day is a gift from our Heavenly Father for us to unwrap. Life was or is something God is allowing you to unwrap daily.
I’m sure I can think of multiple examples of this in my life but since this is my World Race blog I will focus on this journey. When I applied to The World Race and got accepted I was excited. I was eagerly waiting for September to come so I could launch on this epic adventure. Once launch arrived I found myself getting even more excited and ready to just get to my first ministry host. As the race continued on I found myself randomly always looking forward to the next country, it’s beauty, it’s ministry, and it’s people. It’s not that I didn’t love the place I was at but I wanted to know and experience what was next. As I entered into my 5th month in Rwanda I knew I wanted this to change. I knew I wanted to focus more on the here and now then whats to come. While praying about it one night God gave me a vision/analogy of a kid at Christmas. When he comes down stairs Christmas morning and sees all the gifts under the tree and is excited to see what’s inside. As he opens one boxes to find the game system he had been asking for all year. He is excited and eagerly moves on to the next one to see what else is waiting for him. With this analogy God spoke to me about how I live my day to day life. Often I see the day ahead of me yet I am eager to see what tomorrow or the future holds. It’s time for me to stop sitting around and wondering whats in the next gift but enjoy the one I have in front of me.
Today God presented me with the gift of life. I woke up in Rwanda, Africa to find a heart that was beating, breathe in my lungs, a team who encourages me, a host family who loves me, and a new friend who wants to know me. God looked at my gift of today and like any gift giver he knew what was waiting for me. He knew that inside I would find the beautiful, mountainous day in Rwanda. He knew all the thoughts, preparation, and facts he placed in this gift were going to be revealed when I opened my eyes.
I encourage you to take time and reflect on the gift of today. What small or big blessings God has purposely given you today. Don’t over look Him. Trust me it’s easy to but he is worthy to be recognized. It’s not bad to be excited about whats to come but not allow that to overcast what is right in front of you.
