The week before we headed off to Ethiopia, my team was hanging out in our apartment in North Africa, wondering what the Lord had in store for the upcoming month. Some of my teammates felt like God had already shown them part of what the month was going to hold, which was super exciting. But I was like, what the heck? I haven’t heard anything yet! So I decided to actually pray about it and stop wondering and speculating on my own. A couple of us did 5 minutes of listening prayer in silence (which is essentially just listening to what God puts on my heart because sometimes prayer can become a monologue instead of a dialogue).
I closed my eyes and anticipated anything and everything He could give me for Ethiopia. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to see nothing but the opening “Circle of Life” scene from The Lion King. Haha, very funny… is this just because this is Africa? Do you have anything else for me God? Maybe something profound? These thoughts raced through my head as nothing but that song continued to fill my head. I opened my eyes a little frustrated… I just wanted some big cool revelation, not a Disney song.
My team encouraged me to press into what that song meant for me, so I listened to it for an hour straight when I was at the gym that evening. And I got nothing. It wasn’t until our second flight on the way to Ethiopia after our layover in Rome that I came to realize the deeper meaning in the song. Belonging. It’s all about finding your place and being confident in that, discovering who you are and what your purpose is. And that’s what Ethiopia was about for me. Yes, our ministry at HOPEthiopia ranged from playing with the orphan kiddos to being a lawnmower to helping with their reforestation project, but this idea of belonging is something I’ll never forget.
This month has stretched me in so many ways. I’ve realized that I do have a voice (and I don’t need to fight to use it), God can use me even when I don’t think He can, I can step out in faith and call people higher because of what He’s done in my life, and I have unique perspective to bring to the table. It’s crazy because people have been telling me since the start of the Race that I have a lot of wisdom, and I would usually respond by laughing it off. After all, it seems crazy to me, the youngest on my team who has been viewing herself as stupid for so long. But now I’m finally in a place where I can see the truth. The Lord thrives in my weaknesses, and I am starting to let Him use me more and more. He doesn’t need us, but He wants us. We belong to something so much bigger than ourselves. Thanks for reading!
-Catherine <3
