The other side of being ready is the spiritual side of the trip. Feet are one thing, our souls are another. Here, I can say with even more confidence that no, we are probably not ready and I'm not certain anyone could ever truly be ready for that aspect of a trip similar to the one we are about to make. Repeatedly through the Bible people who are called forward by God seem to be completely oblivious to what God is calling them toward: Abraham, Moses, the Israelites in the desert, the apostles, Paul, all of them are shocked - shocked! - by what the find out about God on their journeys. In a lot of ways, a journey like this is when we discover new things about God we never saw before. All of the above characters saw things about God they never saw before because they suddenly find themselves in new places. But maybe more than new things about God, we come to find new things about ourselves. You look at the world in new ways when you're in a strange country with sore feet. These are simply things you just can't prepare for. I'm certain Mary and Joseph were not truly prepared for what awaited them in Bethlehem. How could Paul know what awaited him on the Damascus Road?
No. I'm not ready. Don't ask again.
What I know I am ready for is the following: sore feet, aches I have not felt before, the beauty of the country, travelilng with thirteen people whom I have come to know better over these months, long plane rides, a long bus ride, meeting people I would otherwise probably never meet, keeping my eyes open to the possibilities of all the unexpected, but am I really ready, is the question. Am I really ready to embrace what might lie ahead of me and what I might be called to do next? I promise to share with you when we return or along the way if I was really ready?! When the Vicar gave his sermon last Sunday it brought my thoughts to many places and one of those was the question about what life has in store for you and what you have no idea is going to happen along the way of life as it unfolds rigth in front of you, right on top of you and sometimes all around you. I am ready to soak up everything within these miles that lie ahead of us, that I do know.
ReplyDeleteOh yee of little face, you might not think that your are ready, but I am sure that God is ready for you all to take this journey. Please let His Spirit work on all of you, do not fight it, but be open to what ever God's plan is for all of you during this journey.
ReplyDeleteYou can prepare for such a pilgrimage with all the ordinary things, but only God will open your hearts to the wonders of His love. So do not fret if you are ready, but open your hearts to Him and you will experience the wonders of this pilgirmage.