I am NOT Normal

The dictionary defines it as an adjective that is conforming to a standard; usual, typical or expected.  As a noun it is defined as the usual, average or typical state or condition. 

But stop and really take some time and think about this! We use this word a lot in our everyday language.  
We are always saying

I just have a NORMAL job!
I am just a NORMAL girl or guy!
I’ll take my NORMAL at Starbucks!
We are going to our NORMAL restaurant or store!
I like watching my NORMAL TV shows!
I like the NORMAL music!
I had a NORMAL day!

Sometimes we make the actual word ‘NORMAL’ more impressive and use words like
STANDARD, REGULAR, TYPICAL or AVERAGE!

But it doesn’t matter how you look at it or try to change, it all means the same.
 And most importantly …we like NORMAL!  It is comfortable and safe.  There are no surprises and life goes by smoothly.

This was me before the race.  I liked normal.  I knew what to expect, I knew where I would be sleeping each night.  I knew that I could turn on my computer and have instant WIFI.  I knew that I could turn on the facet and have running water and that I could flush toilet paper down the toilet.  I knew that I could shower whenever I wanted to.

  I enjoyed that if I had a craving for certain food, I could jump into my car and get it.  I enjoyed being able to find AC if it was hot. .  It was normal for me if I was tired of my clothes that I could go to the store and get a new outfit.    It was normal for me to get up early, go to work and then come home at the end of the day.  I was used to having Saturdays off, having church on Wednesday night and Sunday mornings. 

My life was normal.  I usually knew what each day would bring and I really didn’t have it that bad.   I liked it most of the time and I didn’t think it would ever change.

Now being 5 and  a half months into this 11 month adventure, I have realized that my NORMAL isn’t the same anymore. My new NORMAL has rocked my world upside down.  And to most people, my NORMAL is not really that normal! 

The first couple of months, I was getting use to this new way of living.  Everything was new and exciting and also extremely nerve-wracking.  Learning to wash your clothes by hand, or learning that you have to flush the toilet by dumping a bucket of water straight into the toilet.  THAT ISNT NORMAL!!!   I would have laughed if you told me that I would not be able to shower for a week or that travel days turned into 5+ days of pure craziness. 
I am getting use to the extreme heat and the consistent sweating.  It is normal to go into a church and know that I probably will either not understand one word of the service because I don’t speak the language or know that one of us on my team will be preaching.

It’s normal to be walking in town and being the only ‘white person.’  And then when you see a ‘white person’ you stare at them and wonder what in the world they are doing and not sure how to act around them. 
It is normal for me not to know the day, date, month, country or even what time zone I am in.  It is normal for me to know that I should never ask what I am eating because if I knew I might get sick to my stomach.

It is normal to form this special bond with people who you don’t ever speak the same language as they do or if they do speak English you may understand about half of what they are saying.  To feel so comforted and loved by people you just met.  It is normal to share with them how much God loves them and wants to have this special relationship with them. 

It’s normal to feel God holding you when you feel you can’t go on anymore.  To even be angry with God because you don’t understand but know that He teaching you a lesson you know you need to learn.  It’s normal to desire to have intimate time with God and that you fight to get that time!  

I don’t think about what the day is going to bring because in ministry it is consistently changing.  It has almost come to a point that I forget that I am living in another country and that 5 months ago..this wasn’t my normal life. 

I don’t want this feeling to go away.  I get to come home in 5 and a half months…and I can’t wait to see my friends and family.   I’m excited to show and tell them the things that I have learned and hear what God has been teaching them.

  BUT I pray every day that I will never fall back into my old NORMAL. 
I don’t want to get back into the routine of going to work and coming home at the end of the day.  I don’t want to just sit in a church service and ‘get my fill’ for the week. I don’t want to go back where I put God in a box and only take Him out when I need Him.  I don’t want my normal behavior to come back and to listen to the lies Satan has told me all my life.

 I don’t want to be NORMAL ANYMORE. 

I am living the craziest life I could ever think of!   God has me here for a reason and I am so thankful for this opportunity.  I needed this wake up call.
This thing that I am most excited about is that I can’t wait to go home and keep this new way of living.  I want to fight to keep this my normal.   It is not going to be easy but this trip hasn’t been easy. 
This time I am not going to do it alone!!