It's Almost Time

Well, are you ever really ready?

I'd like to know who can actually define the point when someone is ready to do something. I am a huge believer in taking that first step to find out if there is support under you. That's faith my friends. Faith. 

I am so grateful that God has allowed me the opportunity to co-lead a team to France. Things happen in life that you never imagine or expect. It's an adventure and I thank you all for being part of the process. So yea, we head out next week all in the name of Jesus. God = Love so...all in the name of Love! We have spent three months preparing for this. So much has happened. What has happened in your life in the past three months? Are you still the same person? Has life burdened you? Has hope filtered into your soul? May this bring light into your bright days and turn dark nights into dawn. 

When I was little, I remember going on a field trip with my Girl Scout troop. We went to New York City to visit Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. I remember I could not wait! Thoughts would run through my head about going to the city without my parents and how I must be growing up. One of my favorite things about going on field trips was that my mom would take me to go get a bagged lunch at Blimpie's. Oh my goodness. I loved Blimpie's. "What do you mean I get to pick out whatever I want to put on my sandwich?! And chips?!" Yes ma'am... So I had my bag lunch ready to go, kissed my Momma goodbye, and had fun with my friends on the ride into the city. Camera? Check. Spending money? Check. (Thanks Mom.) An unusual amount of adrenaline? Check. Field trips are awesome and you know it. 

We arrived at Lady Liberty, tickets in hand, and made our way up the tiny stair case. Ok, one thing I have to say is that this woman is MASSIVE. Her big toe alone was larger than life. So, i'm taking each step with great enthusiasm. Until I start to think about how high I must actually be getting. With each step up this statue seems less and less interesting to me. After all, who comes to this thing to see the inside of it. All I see are people's feet and tons of metal and iron and copper. NOT interested. The stairs are the winding type which doesn't help anything. I think there has to be a million stairs up. Which my child mind begins to realize...I think this means I have to do all of this again. Except downward. I start to reconsider why I decided to come on this trip anyway. Who actually enjoys Girl Scouts? This is awful and all I want is my Blimpie sandwich. 

I finally get to the top after who knows how long. Everyone stops and is looking out of the windows of the top of Lady Liberty's Crown. I am not impressed. There is nothing in all of creation that is going to make me enjoy taking a look at how far I would have to fall before I die. I am not a bird. I don't belong up here in this confined space to look at clouds and all the tiny ant sized people who are safe and SANE on the ground. It was time to go back down. You know I did it because I'm sitting here at this computer, alive to tell about it years later. However, the fun part was just ahead of me......yeah right. I tried my best to walk down those stairs but they were SO steep! Who makes these things?! I could not take it anymore. I turned myself around in this narrow and steep stair-- STEP, and put my hands on the steps and started crawling down those stairs like nobodies business. And it wasn't. I was making sure Nickie was getting down to the bottom of this New York icon safe and sound and if that required crawling, so be it. 

Some people laughed and so did I, eating my Blimpie's and chips and waiting to see my Momma and tell her I owned that statue and ain't nobody got nothin' on me. Not height, nor depth, nor width could hold me down. I went all the way to the top and all the way to the bottom and I WAS ALIVE! I was clearly not ready and I am glad that no one told me that. I needed that experience. Fear was overcome!

Years later I arrived here in Hawaii and we went to the southernmost point in the United States. A 45-65 foot drop to the water, depending on the swell. You know I stared at that cliff for a good 20 minutes...then took off running. That cliff jump was the best, most freeing, exciting field trip of my life. So far. 

I'm heading off to France in 6 days. I'm staring at this field trip. I may or may not be ready in people's eyes but guess what? I've climbed to the top and bottom of the Statue of Liberty, jumped off crazy cliffs, and I will be landing in France, hitting the ground running. All with the help and grace of God. Because, "I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Vive la France! Thank you God!

By the way, before writing this, I asked the Holy Spirit to help me write. I wanted to write about my upcoming outreach mission to France. He led me to write about that Girl Scout trip. I had no idea why or where it was going. A gentle nudge came about half way through and I hear a question, "Who gave the Statue of Liberty to America?" FRANCE. 

Only God.