I’ve read The Lord of the Rings many many times. Like, I’m not sure how many times I’ve read each book in the trilogy. And I’m really not sure how many times I’ve watched the movies. But there’s one scene that I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. A ton.
The moment when Frodo decides to go to Mordor alone. Part of it is fear, but a huge part of it is that he sees what the ring has done to the people around him and he decides that bearing the burden alone is better than other people potentially getting hurt.
And then Sam happens.
Sam sees Frodo (or in the books sees an empty boat being rowing itself across the river. Suspicious to say the least) heading across the river towards Mordor all alone. And Sam isn’t having it. He knows Frodo can’t do it alone.
Sam isn’t the strongest, the bravest warrior, or the smartest hobbit around. But he is the most loyal. He sees his friend struggling and he stands in the gap. In the end, the quest would have failed if it weren’t for Sam. Frodo carried the ring to the end, but Sam carried Frodo.
Sometimes we get to be the Sams in other people’s lives, but sometimes we are the Frodo’s and we NEED the Sams of this world.
8 months ago I was a solo Frodo hanging out in the middle of the river. Y’all, I didn’t want anybody to come alongside me because my emotional baggage was too big and might hurt somebody else.
Team New Ground brought me 4 incredible Sams. These folks have stood by me and walked with me through the dark moments of the last 4 moments. They’ve helped me fight the darkness that sometimes threatens to overtake the stronghold of my mind. They’ve watched the self sabotage that Happens and spoken truth into the lies. They’ve snuggled me and given me the physical touch I need to survive in this wild world. And this month specifically, they’ve flooded my soul with color.
Yellow. Sunflower yellow.
The brightest color you can find. The color the brings this heart so much joy. The color that reminds me that we just gotta keep on following the Son. The color that says “you got this sister”.
Mordor is dark, smelly, and hot. It’s full of dangers, heart break, and pain. But in the middle of the darkness, there are memories of The Shire from Sam.
I’ve had many Sams in my life over the years. But the last 4 months my team mates are my Sams and my Shire is Sunflowers.
Finding joy in the dark.
Finding joy in the hard.
Finding joy in the crazy.
Finding joy in the painful.
Finding joy in the growth.
Finding joy in the pruning.
Finding joy in all things.
So, thank you Team New Ground for being so fabulous and looking so much like Jesus.
