For the past few years I have felt God directing me to pursue His glory, rather than trying to either build up or salvage what was left of mine. I went to training camp without knowing anyone or having any expectations of what was ahead (because rather than connecting on social media I was hiking on the Appalachian Trail). After walking over 1,000 miles trying to get away from God, I figured I would take a moment and see if the lingering feeling that would never go away was in fact a calling towards the purpose and fullness I desired. As I arrived at training camp and from everyday thereafter I was completely blown away and reaffirmed this is in fact where I am supposed to be. Over the days at camp, I was blessed to meet some of the most beautiful people I have known in an environment that was centered around God’s love for us, and our love for each other. As I was still trying to rebel, I found myself asking God to show me more signs to affirm this is His will, even though He had made it perfectly clear to me before. I recall a night when I said if this be right, then let someone spontaneously come and pray with me, which of course happened moments later. On another night I placed three words in my mind and asked for someone to speak them back if this be true, and after the service the speaker told me the first word and that I did not have to go through this alone. For the last sign the speaker asked if anyone was feeling “stuck” and I raised my hand and as others were praying for me the filling in my tooth fell out, which gave me the opportunity to leave camp to seek a dentist a few days later. At the time I thought it insignificant, but have come to learn that was perhaps the most significant moment through this experience of running, along with the true beauty of Christian love. I took the opportunity to leave camp and not return and I was able to see and feel the true bottom of a life in which was either lived outside of or rejecting of God’s call. In that nothingness I called out to the team for them to take me back and gave them and God my full commitment. Not only did they say yes, but they welcomed with me open arms in a moment of love and forgiveness I will never forget. In a strange kind of way, this would have never happened had the tooth filling not fallen out while those around me were offering up their prayers on my behalf. From that moment, I have been able to feel God’s Spirit and witness His power first hand. On a later service, a girl in our squad mentioned her ailment and was asking for God to reveal His Spirit to her. After we prayed on her behalf and we asked how she was feeling, I recall her reaction so profoundly. Rather than a simple yes or no, she immediately broke into tears and said the pain she had felt so long was gone. I share this story, and hopefully with many more to come, not for her or myself, but rather as a witness of God’s glory and the revealing of Himself.
There is certainly a broken world we all navigate and the first thought that comes to my mind is that was never God’s intention. However, since sin and free will are part of the human existence, God calls us to the love and service of each other through the Grace, power, and example set by Jesus Christ. Over the next eleven months, I sincerely ask for your prayers on this journey, and not just for me, but for all of those leaving to serve and the broken souls begging to be filled with God’s love. In closing I think back to the phrase, we do not have to do this alone, and to be honest, we most likely can’t do it alone. Therefore I ask for your prayers that through God’s love and our willingness to serve, that reconciliation and healing occur as God’s Will would dictate, not for our glory, but for His.
