The morning began with me busting through the invisible wall of self-doubt that had been keeping me from forging on with this new writing project. I kept hearing my son’s words, ‘You are a disciple, it’s what you do!‘ and I knew that if I would just sit down and type the first word it would begin. I had to make the move. And sure enough an entire new story line erupted on the page. At times I got so caught up in what I was writing I’d push back from the desk and walk away, anxious because of the scene that was unfolding, and then I’d look around in the kitchen wondering what was it I wanted? The funny part was I didn’t need anything from the kitchen! I was just caught up in the story I unconsciously ‘took a break’. 🙂 By the time the alarm on my phone sounded to warn me to take off for my lunch appointment I’d been writing two hours and managed to type out 2 1/2 pages. (Such is the life of writing…it doesn’t seem like a lot but it is.) Then I remembered how I wrote EXPOSED, every day I wrote at least one page, if I could manage the time then two pages until the book was written. Then I went back and began editing. Recalling this made me giddy inside and once again I realized I can do this!
🙂 We all have to begin somewhere, right? First step forward gets you moving.
The rest of the day was blessed with various stories of how God has blessed others in ‘unconventional’ ways. One young man told me about his recent trip to the Holy Land (which, of course, made me realize this is now #1 on my bucket list!!!). To listen to him describe actually being where Christ had been all over Galilee, in Cana, at the His tomb, in the very desert…ugh it brought tears to my eyes to imagine being there in physical form when I know a taste of the journey in a spiritual realm. These were all amazing stories but the coolest was how God got him there. This young man is a youth minister and doesn’t make much except to survive. When he was asked to go to Jerusalem he had to turn it down knowing he didn’t have the funds available. He could fly standby because of a parent that works for an airline but he still didn’t have the funds for the lodging, meals, etc. One day the teens in his youth group were teasing him about entering a radio contest. He balked at the idea but they were insistent so he went ahead and entered. A week later the teens called and text him all excited “They are announcing your name on the radio!!”. Sure enough, he won the contest! It was just enough to cover his trip to the Holy Land and just in time too. The next best ‘gift’, he was flying standby and when his name was called he found that they placed him in business class. He looked at the ticket and asked the woman at the counter, “Do you know this is business class?” He said she looked at him and in a strange and calm voice said, “You are where you are supposed to be.” He said it was the oddest thing, as if God was speaking the words through her that he didn’t dare say anything else.
I just love stories like that!! God wanted him there and he used even unconventional methods to get him there. And it wasn’t even that he needed something from this young man, God just wanted to bless him. That’s what I love the most.
All the way home I kept talking out loud in the car, “Okay, God, I want to go to the Holy Land too…and I wouldn’t mind business class either! And if you want, First class is great too! Anytime, I’m ready.”
🙂
Blessings
Shannon