South Africa
This month has been a lot about just BEING with God. Everytime I turn around, it seems, someone has asked me, "What did God teach you today?" It's a good thing, to be sure, to learn new things from God… but I'm tired. Maybe it's the fact that we are halfway through this crazy 11 month adventure, maybe it's because we've arrived in such a peaceful place (beach, woods, and sun), but whatever the case may be, I find I'm exhausted. I no longer wish to examine my every thought and I've been striving so hard to be better that I've almost forgetten what I liked about myself in the first place. Why must I learn something new everyday? Why can't I just BE? Why must I always be searching for more? Are there not times when today is enough for today?
I recently read a letter from a friend in which she was encouraging me to spend time with God. In it, she distinguished between 'quiet time' (reading the bible, listening to music, journaling, etc) from 'God time.' Her 'God time,' she told me, came in the form of running… just her, the road, and God. That was how she best met God. I began to wonder how well I was meeting God. Not well at all, I think. I had been so busy trying to find something to learn, trying to be a better person, that I had forgotten how to just be.
Have you ever read the book the Five Love Languages? The book talks about how we all give and recieve love in different ways: Gifts, Physical Touch, Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, and Quality Time. Well, I wonder if God doesn't have a love language too. He certainly used to love Gifts… the old testament is chock full of sacrifices, but since Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, the ultimate gift, I think perhaps that gifts, while nice, are no longer necessary. With regard to Physical Touch… well, we can't exactly touch God, not in the physical sense, so out the window that goes. And while I think God certainly likes Words of Affirmation, I wonder if He needs them… after all, He certainly knows exactly who He is. As to Acts of Service, they are certainly valued, but as we're told in the new testament, we are not saved through acts, but rather acts are a result of faith. I am left then with the opinion that Quality Time may be our Father's Love Language.
Our God, our Heavenly Father, had no need to make man. He wanted man, because it pleased Him. He walked with Adam. He spoke to Moses. He loved David. Our Father desires RELATIONSHIP. And while I can never claim to be an expert at relationships, I think it safe to say that relationships are all about quality time and love. They are about just BEING with someone, and being yourself. They're about investing in someone. About sharing all of yourself and allowing them to share of themselves. And however we do that, whatever form that takes, whether running (doubtful in my case), singing, dancing, or just laying in a hammock, the important thing is that we have met God.
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South Africa
Contact: Volunteer in South Africa
Job: Sports Camp, Bible stories, skits, and songs, Feeding and Loving kids
Dates: December 12th – January 10th
　
