JKAY.
But anyways..
A year and a half ago I hopped on a plane that departed from JFK airport and arrived in Dublin, Ireland. All by myself. I was excited to have a night and a day of adventure in Dublin before my mom & dad, 2 of my aunts, and my uncle would arrive the next day.
For those 12 days, we would drive through scenic rolling green hills [my uncle at the wheel.. that made for a separate adventure and loads of laughter] and stay at different B&B’s every other night.
Even though it was a memorable time with my family that I’ll always treasure, God showed me that it was more. There’s something about getting outside of your realm of comfort, crossing borders, seeing another world you thought was always too big for you, and even, in this case, exploring some of your roots. [Costello is Irish, not Italian btw]. I believed that then, and now even more that I’ve seen everything that I have in the past 10 months.
Even though I always believed in God’s love for me, that didn’t stop me from adopting the belief that I was something like a minuscule ant in God’s great big world, and that He would look down on me with eyes of love.. but still from afar. I believed He loved me so much but I didn’t allow His love to soak into my heart, giving me true identity. Still pretty insecure, asking how I could possibly impact the world for God’s kingdom.
Can’t say that a defining moment happened where I discovered who I was in a jiffy and everything felt right after that. It has been a process, of allowing what I believed to really sink in. Allowing it to become something real, that overwhelmed me body and soul, to the point of me lying on my back on the floor in my bedroom, soaked in tears. Somewhere along the road, God’s love shifted from only being a theory, to becoming a reality. Something that I really felt and experienced.
And when you’ve experienced the love of God, it’s like dipping your hand into a bag of freshly popped sweet and salty kettle corn. You can’t just stop there.
When I was in Ireland in August 2012, I had already decided that I would be coming on the World Race around that time the next year. I still had no idea what life would look like, just that I would be finishing school and going on this journey with God to foreign places for 11 months. But of those several hours that we ventured thorough the countryside, I remember overlooking vast expanses of green rolling hills while God spoke to my heart. I got the inkling of amazing promises, yet to be fulfilled.. things that I couldn’t even imagine, like the misty space that surpassed what I could capture of the rolling green hills from out of the passenger’s window.
“Wait for me,” are the words God put on my heart.
And you know what? Of all places, Swaziland reminds me of Ireland. It’s 66 degrees, overcast, and where we are in Swaziland is not like the brown bush land that I lived off of in Zambia four years ago. Nope. We are surrounded by nothing but green rolling hills, wood fences, and cattle for endless miles.
..and I’m reminded of God’s promises.
As my Race begins to come to a close, I still don’t really know what’s next. But I am elated with excitement that comes from just knowing God and His love.
And I’m even more excited about the unknown than ever before.
I am closer to being fully funded for the Race! I now only need $1,546! Please consider clicking the “Support Me” link and giving towards my trip so that I may remain on the field for the next 2 months! I would be so blessed by your giving.
Thank you so much.
Love,
E
