My name is Maggie, and I am afraid.
I’m not a risk taker. I’m not an adventurer. Change makes me cringe. In high school, I didn’t do anything rebellious, afraid I’d get thrown into prison. It took me 4 years to leave home and go to the School of Worship. I didn’t move out of my parents house until age 24 because I was scared. So when God called me to do this thing called the World Race, I was- and probably my whole family- shocked. I thought for sure this must be some mistake. A HUGE mistake. This thing goes against every fiber of my being.
I am Maggie, and I am afraid.
These last couple weeks, I have dreamt about lions. I keep seeing them in my daily life, not really understanding what they signify, and for the last couple of weeks, every day, I’ve walked in fear about what I am to do: leave my beloved family for a year, step out into the complete unknown, meet strange people across new lands and oceans. You think I’m brave, but deep inside, I am utterly terrified.
Then the Lord led me to read the story of Ruth.
Ruth was probably just an ordinary girl- a girl abandoning her former life to follow her mother-in-law. She was a foreigner in a strange land. She had no food, no prospects, no protection… And you know what happened? The Lord Almighty guided her, provided for her, redeemed her, and because of her bravery, a miracle came through her line. Jesus.
He whispered to me that day. He said, “Maggie, I will do the same for you. I will protect you. I will provide. You don’t have to be afraid. I will shoulder your fear, like I shouldered the cross.”
A couple days before I read Ruth, I was sitting with my mom and my bestie Amelia. I was telling them how afraid I was, crying, wishing someone could understand my fears. Amelia said to me, “Maggie you are bolder than you think.” And my mom said, “bold like a lion.” Me??
When you look at a lion, you see power. You see boldness. You see courage. The things I never saw in myself. And that is why God has been giving me pictures of lions. To show me that
I am bold.
I am courageous.
I am powerful.
I am a lion.
I am Maggie, and I was afraid.
“THE RIGHTEOUS ARE AS BOLD AS LIONS.” Proverbs 28:1
