Being outside and soaking in nature has always been where I have felt most at peace and felt closest to the Lord. Today is my second full day in South Africa, and I decided to take advantage of the beautiful grounds of Impact Africa’s ministry base and sit in silence for a little bit. It has been awhile since I have had any time to talk to God in silence, since I spent the last 48+ hours flying from Atlanta to Boston, exploring Boston, flying from Boston to Qatar, and finally flying from Qatar to Johannesburg. All this travel was done with about 7 or so hours of sleep injected into it, which resulted in me crashing from exhaustion once arriving at our ministry site. Needless to say, I haven’t had the quiet time I so desperately need recently.
Impact Africa’s base is absolutely beautiful. The grounds are full of big grassy areas, palm trees, many different types of flowers I have never seen before, and views of the neighbors’ horses and emus. There is also a pond, a swimming pool, a few big tiled balconies looking out over the rolling hills (which strangely make me feel like I’m in Southern California), and countless benches, tables, and prime hammocking trees strewn around. It is a beautiful, peaceful place that I cannot fully put into words.
If you know me, you know how much I intentionally love to soak in and appreciate the small gifts God puts in front of me every day. Today, as I sat journaling outside, I really began to focus on the birds that were hanging out in the grass nearby. Every time I have walked around the grounds so far I have noticed them, but this time I really saw them. They are interesting birds and like nothing I have seen before. They are black and white with long legs and make a pretty weird sound … but for some reason it calms me. I began to thank the Lord for these birds and giving me eyes to notice the little unique things about His creation, things that many people don’t sit still and appreciate. As I sat there, I clearly felt God speak into my mind:
I notice and appreciate you for all your uniqueness, just like you notice and appreciate the birds.
Accepting myself for who I am was something I struggled with a lot growing up. And not gonna lie, it is occasionally a struggle that still pops into my mind every once in awhile these days. Through the little things, God constantly reminds me that He made me just like He made all the creation I so enjoy appreciating. Knowing that He sees every little thing in my mind and soul and still understands and loves me never fails to fill me up. I am so thankful that He gave me this little reminder today, and I hope whoever is reading this knows that He notices and appreciates you for just who you are, even the parts of you that you feel like no one may appreciate, understand, or even like. We have an amazing Creator who desires to know us to the depths of our souls. This is something to be celebrated and reminded of every day!
P.S. – I start ministry with Impact Africa this coming Monday! Updates to come when I have WiFi next 🙂
P.P.S. – Not having WiFi where I am staying is extremely refreshing. Highly recommend unplugging when you have the chance.
