Ever since we entered Da Nang, Son Tra has been staring me in the face. Son Tra is a massive female budda statue near the coast of the beach. It’s just far enough from our hostel to be a challenging run and simple enough to find without directions. I set off to run on a warm Vietnamese day on a road near the beach. Vietnam is one of those rare places where there are mountains near the beach and Son Tra lies at the base of the mountain. My eyes widened and my excitement grew as I ran closer and closer to the mountain. At the base of the mountain the roads are so lush and green you could have thought I was in Hawaii. Running in new lands brings me into new levels of praise and gratitude, and Vietnam is no different. I spent much of the run smiling and dancing even in the intense heat.
It took me an hour to get to the entrance of Son Tra and by that time I was super dehydrated. I didn’t have any money so all I could do is pray for provision and ask people. Right away I met a travel guide not only gave me water but also we exchanged contact info for a possible motorcycle tour! After the dehydration issue was solved I ran into another problem, they didn’t let me into the entrance of the grounds because I wasn’t wearing a shirt. I ran all this way and wasn’t going home until I saw the statue so I prayed for a shirt… and ended up getting so much more. The first guy I talked to was wearing a couple layers and I asked if I could borrow one of his shirts to get into the grounds. He took the shirt off of his back and I went into the statue grounds with him and his three friends. The young man’s name was Son and these guys basically took me under their wing for the rest of the morning. They bought me ice cream and more water (much needed). After we explored everything around the temple and the statue I hopped on the back of one of their mopeds and they treated me to lunch. Son dropped me off at the hostel and told me to keep the shirt. Altogether the Lord provided a shirt, two bottles of water, ice cream, lunch, and most importantly great new friends. I only asked for water and a shirt to borrow!
So far Vietnam has been a month of deeper into lessons the Lord has taught me in the past. This experience was a huge reminder of God’s provision. He provided a whole adventure for free and new friendships to pursue for the rest of our time here. It’s when we step out with nothing that we realized we have everything we need with God as our Father. As we step into adulthood it’s easy to lose sight of God as our provider, but I believe it honors him when we look to him for provision. I believe this because I don’t know a parent who wouldn’t be offended by the notion that their child doesn’t think they love them enough to provide for them.
Prayer- “Lord may we never lose our childlike faith and dependence. May we trust in your provision and love for us. Thank you for the adventure you provided and the many more that await. Amen”
