Sometimes on the race we get caught up in the word “adventure”. We have long days of ministry and just want to spend our adventure or off days resting, and then we leave a country (India) and say we didn’t do anything adventurous there. When I look back on my time there, though, I am reminded of all the adventures that came our way and am reminded that life is an adventure, and just living on the other side of the world allows me to be on one huge adventure!
This month, a group of 15 of us decided to take advantage of our adventure day, leave the city life behind and head to the mountains for a more thrilling adventure- Bungy Jumping and/or Canyon swinging!
If you have never been – I highly suggest it. This was my second time and I would do it again. I love the adrenaline rush it gives. The way your legs start to shake as you penguin walk out to the edge… You lift your arms out to the side and the count down begins, but you beg them to stop because you aren’t ready to jump yet. My first jump was crazy – I didn’t have faith in that huge elastic band and it took a lot of encouragement to get me to finally jump. This time was different, though. I took a deep breath, walked to the edge. The countdown began and I swan dove off this bridge hanging 160 m (525 ft). My heart raced and it felt like I couldn’t breathe until I could finally feel the elastic stretching and my body slowing down. So thrilling, but so nerve racking at the same time. I felt alive, and as my squadmate Paige would say, you meet God in adventure.
As I have reflected back on this experience, I have realized how many people take a leap of faith not knowing if that elastic band is going to catch them, but trusting that it is going to save their life. 35,000 people a year take the leap of Faith in New Zealand, where the first commercial bungy jump was created. That is a lot of people. I can’t help but think about how easy it is to trust an elastic band that keeps you from crashing into the rocks below, but how hard it is to fully trust God. God is always there for you and He will never fail, yet it is hard to put your trust in Him fully until you know Him fully.
Like bungy jumping, that first leap is so hard. Diving head first off of a bridge many metres above a canyon goes against all of your bodies instincts. It takes some encouragement and self-talk, but you can do it and it feels amazing. That is exactly how following the Lord is, when you finally jump in fully, you experience how wonderful life is with him by your side. It takes faith though and you have to take that leap to enjoy and embrace what He has in store for you. And every time you decide to follow Him and go where He is leading you it gets easier, but that thrilling and exciting feeling of where He is leading you never gets old. It is always exciting and always makes you want more, because a life with God is exciting- it fills you with an unexplainable joy. God is an adventure and I am glad that I get to live every day being loved by Him and I am so happy that I get to live a whole 11 months of just focusing on our relationship!
The World Race is an adventure, but it isn’t doing crazy, exciting, thrilling things all the time. Take that leap of faith though and enjoy the journey! It may get hard and you may want to quit, but keep pushing because He is worth it!
Take a Leap of Faith and enjoy a fulfilling life with God!
