An unsuccessful waterfall adventure taught me more about God’s heart than I ever imagined.
Minyon Falls is a beautiful waterfall that we visited on one of my final days in Australia. I had seen pictures of the falls and was eager to make the hike to the bottom to get some video footage. After we started out on the path, we ran into some hikers who said it had taken them close to an hour to get to the bottom and about the same to climb back up. Realizing it was 3:00 pm and we were supposed to be back at the vans by 4:00 pm, we were faced with the disheartening potential of not reaching the base of the falls.
One of my squad mates Joey looked at me and said, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” I said, “Yes!” and we took off running down the muddy rainforest trails, hoping that our legs would take us to the falls in half the time it took the hikers. It was thrilling at first, speeding down the winding tropical paths. The cross country runner in me was loving every moment of the journey until the forest started to get thicker, wetter, and more humid. My feet were starting to slide on the muddy trails and I was realizing that my flip flop crocs were not quite going to cut it.
Eventually Joey (who was wearing much better footwear) pulled ahead of me and I lost sight of him. I came to a river crossing and there was a sign with two arrows – one pointing right and one pointing left. I looked left and didn’t see a defined path so I lept over the rocks to the stone stairway that led to the right. I continued running for about a mile until two realities started to sink in: 1) I was no longer hearing the sound of water and 2) Joey was nowhere in sight. The sound of bugs was deafening as I slowed to a stop. In that moment, I thought to myself, “I’m alone in the Australian rainforest, I have no idea where I am, and in a few hours it will be dark.”
I decided to turn around and sprint back the way I came. Eventually I arrived at the sign with the arrows and realized that the waterfall was just a couple minutes in the other direction. Some hikers said, “It’s so worth it, and you’re so close. You have to go see it!” (see image below of the view I missed). My heart sank. I knew my team would be worried sick. Heading toward the waterfall was out of the question.
My mind was racing as I began running up the switchbacks toward the top. What I just did was crazy. No normal person would sprint 2 miles down a mountain (barefoot for a mile), push themselves to an intense physical extreme, get covered in mud and sweat, and then turn around and sprint back up. I was not acting normally because I desired to see that waterfall more than anything, and I would do whatever it took to get there. Why? Because I believed “it was worth it.” It was a natural treasure, a hidden gem, a sight that people come from all over Australia (and the world) to see.
And God began speaking to me in that moment: “Alyssa, in the same way that you went to great lengths to search out this waterfall, I want you to go to great lengths to search out my people. Go after them with the same intensity. Pursue them with the same desperate desire. Why? Because they’re worth it. They’re worth your time. They’re worth your energy. They’re worth the death of my Son. And they’re worth it even if there’s no payoff, even if you never get to see their salvation.
Wow. I believe God gave me that experience so that I would have a tangible example of what it looks like to pursue His people with reckless love. I’m realizing more and more that His love is not a flowery emotional thing. It’s gritty and fierce. It’s focused and full of desire. He leaves the 99 to go after the one. And I must do the same.
TJ’s Salvation Story:
On the LAST day we were in Australia, God brought TJ across our path. It was our final night of “Pancakes and Chai in the Park” and we had put out a sign that said “Free Nail Art.” One of my teammates had nail polish pens that we were using to draw pictures on peoples’ finger nails, and TJ sat down with us.
As I painted her nails, we started chatting and soon my teammate Shelby came over and greeted us. Shelby had met TJ earlier that week and found out she was seeking to know more about God. Curious about how we met God personally, TJ asked us to share our stories. We chatted for about two hours. She had tons of great questions for us and I could tell she was really understanding more about who Jesus was.
I felt led to pray for her so we all circled up and began speaking God’s love and truth over her. At the end, Shelby said with boldness, “TJ I really feel like it’s your time. Are you ready to give your life to Christ?” With tears welling up in her eyes, she said “Yes!” She prayed and turned her life fully over the Jesus that night. It was beautiful.
TJ was worth it.
Lord, as we head to Indonesia, give me even greater measures of your Reckless Love.
