As you have read in my previous blogs, I have been anxious and worried on The World Race. I have worried mostly about safety, health, and the logistics of the race. When walking through town I was always on guard keeping a close watch on my valuables. Skeptically I would check out anyone that came near our group, trying to detect any willful motive. My mind was constantly running thinking of worst case scenarios and how to prevent one from occurring. It has been my prayer to be able to trust God and not to worry about anything. If you know me well, you realize this is not a simple task and I was not succeeding.
Thursday morning a World Racer that had no idea that I have been struggling with worry, came to me with Psalm 91. I want to encourage you to read all of Psalm 91, but the following are some quotes that jumped out at me; “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.” “No harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble.” This passage immediately comforted me and brought me peace. I have also been uplifted by all of your prayers and encouraging comments.
That afternoon my team headed out into the Palenque to try to meet some people. Even though we had walked in town many times before, I saw buildings and people I had never noticed. As we entered stores and passed vendors I started using some Spanish. I was truly able to enjoy myself and felt comfortable. On the return walk home I was reflecting on the walk and could not get over how much fun we had. I felt like it was the first time that I actually saw Palenque. That is when I realized that I had not worried and instead was able to enjoy the moment. This was definitely peace from God, because without his peace I would have been distracted and consumed with worry. So thank you for your encouragment and prayers…they worked!!
I had no worries when I was jumping off of this waterfall!
The view behind Shekinah, where we are staying.
