Lessons on the Beach

Last week I spent my days sitting on the beach with my family in York Beach, Maine. Just about every summer we build these grandiose sand castles. (We have even been in the local newspaper for it.) But this year we were unable to make our castles because the tide came in everyday smack dab in the middle of the day. 

The first few days we stopped the tide from reaching us by digging a trench and a low wall. With that as our barrier we were able to turn the tide. The next day we decided to do the same. Our grand plan was to combine forces with the family next to us to create a super-wall that would stop the tide from coming up.

We worked so hard to build it. It was a large pile of sand and we were sure that it would stop the tide that was coming. Even when parts started to break and the foundation started to crack we worked to keep it intact. But the tide kept coming and while we stopped it for a while inevitably our wall broke and the water flooded in. Still my cousin Ashleigh held onto the biggest part of the wall. Holding it together until finally she too was engulfed in the waves. When all was said and done there was no sign that the wall had ever been there. 

As I looked at the sand where our wall once stood the whole situation kind of reminded me of our lives. We go through life thinking that our plans are fool-proof and that with them we will make something of our lives. Basically our plans are like the sand wall that we busy ourselves with while we pretend that the tide isn't coming. For us that tide is eternity and it is coming and there is nothing we can do to stop it and when all is said and done, as the years fade on, there will be no signs of the wall we built of sand. Our plans will have been for nothing. 

So we need to focus on something more important. God's plans. Once our wall protecting us from the water was destroyed we turned our attention to something else: boogie boarding. We started riding the waves of the tide. Riding the tide is like following God's plans and working to toward eternity instead of working against it and following our own inevitably flawed plans.

Are you busy building a sand wall that is crumbling around you? Or are you riding the waves of the tide? 

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal." Matthew 6:19-20

"'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,' declares the LORD. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts'" Isaiah 55:8-9 

If I learned one thing this summer is that obeying God's call for your life is so incredibly rewarding. I was petrified to go away this summer but the Lord blessed me more abundantly than I could have even remotely imagined. So my encouragement to you all today is to get on board with God and ride the tide of His never ending love.

South Africa Week 1

Hello my friends!! I'm sorry for my lack of posts but life here in South Africa has been a whirlwind. I feel like I have barely had time to breath! We have been here for a week and it has been filled with so much God so I'll just share one cool story from each day!

July 31
We went to a community called Red Hills and we started at a preschool and when we walked in I saw this boy with so much anger and hatred in his eyes that it scared me. (Remember this it is important later). But I didn't really bond with the kids as I struggled with figuring out what to do now that my role of translator is gone. After we finished at the preschool we went walking around the community and prayed for people. The first person my group talked to was Simnikiwe. She is my age and was home alone while her family was out working. When we asked if there was anything we could pray for she just sighed like she had so much she needed prayer for that she didn't know where to start. I told her we have time and she just said "Really?" To which I responded with absolutely. She told us about her mother's health struggles, her brother who is 17 and living alone away from home and finally for her own dreams of going back to school since she flunked her senior year of high school. As we prayed she began to cry and when we finished she said "You have just made me feel so loved. I don't have any friends here and you made me feel like I do." That was just so cool! I could have spent all day with her.

August 1
This was the day we went shark cage diving! I got sea sick on the boat which wasn't fun but I had a shark come at me with its mouth open and was less than two feet from my face. I screamed but it was soooooo amazingly awesome! I felt like I was living shark week! Actually just the week before the shark week crew had been in those very waters filming.

August 2
On this day we went to another community called Ocean View where I met a little girl named Kami. She just came right up to me and said "Up me" (aka pick me up). She just loved me, she asked if I was a mommy yet and then wanted me to take her home. She played with my hair for a long time and babbled in Afrikaans. Also on this day we were walking around with kids on our shoulders and we started a sing along of Jesus Loves Me and Father Abraham. The kids were singing these songs at the top of their lungs and it was such a sweet sound to hear.

August 3
We went to Hillsong church in the morning for church. It was an amazing service that left me wanting more. Then we went back to Red Hills to pray for more people since more would be home because it was a Sunday. We also went back to ask the director of the preschool if we could take the children on a field trip the next day. We went one man as we prayed who really just encouraged us and told us that the work we were doing was going to grow and flourish. That is something I needed to hear since I often feel discouraged that we aren't doing anything where I can see tangible results, instead we are doing something with heavenly results. I need to stop underestimating the power of prayer.

August 4
We took 13 preschool children to Cape Point which is the southern-most tip of Africa. We also took them to see penguins in Simon's Town. These kids were quite a handful. We were all paired with a child for the day and remember that kid with all the hatred in his eyes? Well he was mine. His name is Anda and he is six.  All day I was nothing but impressed by his (general) obedience and kindness and excitement. He had quite a bit of energy though and I found myself getting my cardio work out in. I thank God that there didn't seem to be a language barrier between Anda and I...I'm pretty sure that was totally God because with the rest of the kids I was met with blank stares when I talked to them. Anda really enjoyed taking pictures with my camera and he was very responsible with it even wearing the wrist strap like I told him to. I was also impressed when a man dropped 100 Rand (about $10) and Anda picked it up, tapped the man on the shoulder and gave it back to him. All without me telling him to! I was so impressed. I hope that Anda gets a good male influence in his life and grows into a wonderful man. He went back to the anger as soon as he was out of my care. It showed me how much he needs love.

August 5
Today we went to another community where we had a tour guide who really just loved his community. His name was Africamoni. He was clearly a mentor to many people in the township. He brought us to specific people's homes who needed prayer. In one home we met Noni and Princess. Noni is 24 with an 8 month old and Princess is 17 who is in her last month of pregnancy. It was cool because we had worship in Noni's living room. We sang in English and they sang in Kossa their language. It was so great! I always get jazzed up about worshiping in other languages.


Tomorrow we leave to go back to Johannesburg for a few days and then it is back to the states!