If you look at my post on December 31/January 1, you see me promising to blog more, if only to get my opinions out to the three people who read my blog. Didn't happen. However, if you read it, you'll get a sense of my desire to draw closer to God throughout the year by caring for others. I had no idea how that was going to happen, and I know I've only gotten a piece of what God has in store for me.
As I sit here, on March 12, 2001 listening to The Outsiders by NeedtoBreathe (which was pretty much the theme song of the week), I can only be thankful for the past week. Spring Break in college has gotten a bad rep. On my Spring Break, however, I spent the week on this road trip called CART: Carolina Adventure Road Trip. "Adventure" is most definitely appropriate. In many ways, this week was an adventure. From Evan's driving, to growing as a community, to learning how to pray this week was one adventure after another.
So: Friday night. Evelyn and I showed up at the ACM (Associated Campus Ministries) Building at 6:45, ready to go. We couldn't wait to get on the road, and see what God had in store for us. I can't speak for Ev, but I thought our trip would start on the dawn of the next day, when we finally got out of Greensboro. God shattered that thought: He had a divine appointment in store. There was a lady in the ACM that I'd never seen before. Ev and I said hello and walked on into the Baptist lounge to put our stuff down and figure out what we were supposed to do. The answer to that question became apparent when Chelsea ran in and said, "Hey, guys! Our trip has started! The lady out there just showed up and we're going to get her some food. Can you two stay with her and talk?" Introductions were made, and we went into the lounge and chatted. She told us about her life, which seems to have been pretty hard recently. Through it all, I just felt this sense of peace and confidence that, even if we couldn't help her with what she was going through, we were doing the right thing by just listening. So after talking to this lady (whose name I'll remember later), we opened in prayer.Not five minutes of "God, please keep us safe on this journey, etc", like I'd come to expect, but an hour-long prayer walk of UNCG's campus. What an incredible way to start off our trip. We prayed for those that didn't know God, that were far from Him, for those that were close to Him, and that through us, His fame and glory would be spread throughout our campus.
What stuck with me about this prayer walk was the peace that came over my soul while walking. Prayer is always something I've struggled with: it was such an abstract concept, and it's something I never understood, except to sit awkwardly with your eyes closed wondering if God could hear you. This prayer walk was the beginning of that concept changing. I was with Chelsea and Rebecca, and I just remember absolutely pouring my heart out to God for the first time in a long time. There was no other conversation, just the three of us praying out loud and silently to the God of the universe about our hopes for His fame on our campus. (The reason I keep using the word "fame": Fame by Rush of Fools. Check it, it's legit.) What an incredible start to the week! I felt like I was finally understanding what it meant to be "in a relationship" with God; pouring out myself, and filling myself up on Him.
More to come on the rest of the week!
Kayla
"Our faces, then, are not covered. We all show the Lord's glory, and we are being changed to be like him. This change in us brings even greater glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." 2 Corinthians 3:18
No comments:
Post a Comment