The Father delights in loving on His children. Over the past few days in Greece, I was blessed with seeing and experiencing some of His best artwork.
As you know, my squad is staying in Romania this month! We are staying with a ministry called Hope Church and let me say, i love what they’re doing. They love to be very hands on and proactive; they also create opportunities for people to ask more questions about the gospel which helps with that person’s personal relationship with Christ. Plus, they love to laugh and have fun while doing it. Now THAT sounds like my kinda ministry.
Our host’s name is Raul. This man has life goin on. He loves deep questions that make your insides twist together in one big knot, loves to serve the Lord best he can, and loves to bless those around him.
He blessed our squad with the opportunity to go to Greece for a few days. (!!!WHAT!!!)
On our first day of ministry, Raul said “you give me good ministry, I give you good vacation.”
I tell you what, I plan to give this man the best darn ministry I can after our recent adventure.
We were in Greece the 17th-19th. The 17th was devoted to driving; took about 15 hours to get there. The 18th for me was eating all the Greek food possible. What. a. day. That was a solid day that ended with a very full belly.
Though the 18th was very filling (literally), the 19th was the day I will never forget. The 19th consisted of literally jumping out of my comfort zone, more teamwork than I’ve ever seen in my life, and sitting right in the palm of The Father’s hand.
When Raul said he was going to take us CLIFF JUMPING in GREECE, I was so excited! WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY!
Then i remembered I was horrified at the idea of cliff jumping, and fear set in. Everyone around me was jumping off the walls at this idea, but I was beyond scared. ‘What if I slipped? What if I didn’t do it right? What if i missed the water?’ I know this sounds totally dramatic, which it is, but that’s sadly where my mind went.
What if this, what if that, what if…
Then I put a stop to it. I set my mind to the fact that I CAN do hard things, and that I WOULD do hard things no matter how much they scare me.
…so i jumped. I may have looked like an idiot while doing it, but that didn’t matter to me. the fact that I was leaping into a sort of unknown, the fact that I was so small yet mighty in that moment, the fact that I did it while holding the hands of one of my best friends. (thank you, Elizabeth for always being there!) Right before I jumped, I looked out and saw my reality: water clearer than I could ever imagine, an endless sky, and mountains calling to be discovered. All of it together was an exhilarating combination that could NOT get better. God loves me so much that He placed all of these captivating sights around me right in this moment. The feeling in the water once i landed was so freeing; the feeling of accomplishment, but more so the feeling of JOY! taking that leap took letting go of everything; that’s the best kind of leap.
Now to the point about teamwork: on the 19th, I saw more teamwork than ever before. A handful of us decided to hike from the jumping rock to the highest point we could see nearby. This required crawling and squatting and walking through spiky leaves and jumping from rock to rock. To me, it was SCARY STUFF. thankfully, I was with a group of experienced people who encouraged me and helped me every step of the way. They were patient with me, calm, kind, and very thoughtful. we eventually made it to the top and back down once again, and captured some beautiful shots and conversations along the way. I love seeing how beautifully the Lord loves me through the ones He places around me.
And now about sitting in the palm of His hand… the best part of my day. This took place when we were swimming over to the jumping rock. Thankfully I had goggles on for this swim! As I was trying to stay afloat through the waves, I took a moment to just float. I was floating on my stomach, facing down, looking into the deep waters of the sea. Tiny fish swimming in and out of the plants, the sunlight glistening through the surface, and the waves bobbing up and down. The sea in its entirety seemed to never end. Then I turned over to float on my back. Looking into the sky I saw an endless blue. The sky was cloudless, totally and completely clear. The sun’s rays slipped down just enough to be seen and illuminate the water around me; I felt so warm. Then I came upright again and looked straight out into the mountains. Mountains have always fascinated me: the fact that God created the mountains, yet He also created me. This truth in itself makes me tear up. What a stunning fact about life and the Creator of it. So as i floated with all of this surrounding me, I felt simply as if I were in the palm of His hand. God shows me He loves me by picking me up and giving me a hug in the most creative ways.
A fun addition: on our drive back to Romania from Greece, we drove through Bulgaria and got to see FALL LEAVES. Elizabeth and I cried tears of joy. The Lord loves what I love and cares about what I care about. Man, what an amazing Father.
Also, I made a video of our time in Greece~ I’d love if you gave it a watch. Thank you all for supporting me through it all; the Lord loves so intensely and so beautifully.
