For those who know me well know I thrive when I’m outdoors surrounded by nature. It’s my adventure playground, exploring Abba’s creation. I’m that person who wanders off the beaten path creating my own track through the thick of the forest, climbing trees, or bouldering rocks along a cliff lining the coast, leading me to a deserted location.
Whether it’s by the coast, in the thick of the forest, in a church in the slums of Africa surrounded by a few scarce growing plants, or admiring the endless sky outside my bedroom window, nature in it’s unfiltered wholeness, no matter what environment it’s in, captivates my whole heart.
Now that it’s spring in AUS & knowing I have to get back into my athletic self for next year (you know, hiking with a 70L pack requires my childhood elite athlete abs & strong legs lol), everyday I travel 2mins from my house & run 4-8kms around a local golf course. & every time, without fail, God speaks to me through His creation. A few weeks back, I was re-reminded about searching out the ‘wonder in the wild.’
Esp given the handful of out of control situations that have happened over the past month, it’s a challenge to search out the ‘wonder’ when it seems as though you are walking through the thick of the wilderness. But it’s a challenge worth pursuing & fighting for; it’s worth choosing to wake up every day & step into courage for.
But, how do you find wonder when you wake up in the middle of the night & need to go to the hospital due to sickness? How do you find wonder when a friend causes you immense heartache & hurt? How do you find wonder when three people you knew passed away all within two weeks of each other? How do you find wonder when someone whose job is meant to support you, neglects you? How do you find wonder when you are forced into a situation where you cannot celebrate a day that everyone around you is celebrating, leaving you feeling alone?
Jesus’ answer? By fixing your gaze on Him, choosing to be intimately known by Him, & allowing yourself to be held by Love in amongst all the confusion.
A friend recently told me that in order to go from glory to glory in the Kingdom, we sometimes have to navigate moments of ‘goriness.’ That’s a truth boom right there, lol. But it’s so flipping true. In order to move from glory to glory, there’s always a process – there’s always a journey of letting go, embracing the free fall, or discovering revelations through unveiling moments of development.
To pursue wonder in the thick of the wilderness is to seek & search for fascination or interest in unfamiliarity or confusion. It’s to intentionally pursue exploring Light, Beauty, & Life within an environment where all you see is shadow.
Ephesians 1:23 ‘…the fullness of Him who fills all in all.’
It’s easy to just focus on the shadow, the darkness, the hurt, & the ‘goriness’ when you’re walking in the wilderness. Why? Because the war between light & dark is real. But a shadow is only created when Light is present. A shadow is only evident when Light is shining on something. A shadow is only evident when Light has been cast.
A shadow, therefore, doesn’t just communicate darkness. It’s also evidence of the absence of darkness. Even in the valley of the wilderness, Light abides. Light is present. Light “fills all in all.”
Psalm 23:4-6 ‘even when I walk through the valley of deepest darkness, you have already conquered me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You remain close to me & lead me through it all the way…for your goodness & love pursue me all my days.’
Glory & Light mark moments of goriness & wildernesses. Literally. Light marks the darkness of shadows, & it casts captivation, fascination, interest, & wonder. Even when we walk through the wilderness, His goodness & love are intensely pursuing us, awaiting to mark us if we choose to lock our gaze on Him & be undone in Him. He is waiting for us to become child-like & fully dependant, for through the process hope & life fill our souls, while He gently & tenderly holds us through it all.
Allow Jesus to carry you; to literally place you upon His shoulders whilst He walks you through the wilderness. He will point with excitement to the moments of wonder & glory, reminding you that His light is ever abiding. Allow yourself to be filled with captivation & fascination, learning that He will always remain close, & His strength will gently hold you, leading “you through it all the way” to a new location, to a higher level of glory in the Kingdom.
My encouragement for you (& myself :)), seek out the wonder & glory in the wilderness & ‘goriness’. Because it’s there. It’s present. It’s infilling spaces in your tailor made created season. It’s through the journey of walking in the wilderness that Abba’s promises are ingrained ever more deeply, allowing opportunity for transitions to move between glory to glory.
Because even in the wilderness, wonder & truth are ever abiding.
…
UPDATE!
I am 50% funded (US$9650) for next year! I only have US$9550 left to fundraise!! So THANKFUL!
Points for those journeying w me in prayer!
: prayer for supernatural rest & physical health
: prayer for rebuilt & strengthened relationships in AUS before I leave in 2020
: prayer for my team mates with their preparation. We’re all facing spiritual battles at the moment, & a number of people on my team have said that they’ve never seen the enemy attack a group of people in such an intentional way. Praying with a knowing that God will weave His goodness into each situation to shape us & equip us for future circumstances, but that though it, we will all deeply know that we are a spiritual army with which we have a covering of great cloud of witnesses over
: prayer for training camp (which is 3 weeks away in the USA). Prayer for continued unity amongst our team, inward transformation, & loads of fun(!!) in the 10-day back to back workshops, activities, & squad wars we will be participating in
: continued prayer for those we will be walking alongside & journeying with overseas; prayer for softening of hearts, open doors where the doors would usually be shut, for seeds to be sown, & for restoration & hope
– em
