"If you want something you have never had, you must be willing to do something you have never done" Thomas Jefferson
So here I am. I stand on the brink of a year filled with what one can only describe as an adventure only to find over the last three months I've experienced much of exactly that. New levels of faith, love, exceptance and solid lessons to point us in the right direction .
Firstly, I found myself as an only child drop kicked to the deep end and forced to live between 15 men. I've been so loved by these men and the word accepted does no justice. I remember my first shower was a rather strange experience. I found myself sharing the bathroom with 4 other men. To go from single child to that is rather drastic, one can only imagine how strange I found it .
Secondly I have found new levels of faith to go on this journey I been planning with our Father. To put it simply besides the funds to be here, I remember standing in a store where my equipment waited for me. My home town is rather small compared to the big cities, we role up and put away the streets after 12 pm. Simply put, I live in Kimberly. The onlyt wo stores that have the equipment I needed are within 200 m of one and other. I can vividly remember standing there with R2000 in my pocket and with this I needed to purchase a duffle bag, tent, sleeping bag and a water bottle, so I'm stuck there with my R2000. Just to give you an idea the sleeping bag, according to the requirements, was R1300 and the duffle bag was R700 do you see the problem here. So at that point I saw myself traveling to Napal in a hello kitty tent with a plastic bag and a rather snazzy duffle bag just so that when I pack up and move I will look professional. I remember asking the Lord if you get me out of this one I will always stand in faith with you. By some miracle a man walks up to me moments later and says he will find sponsors for me... To this day I am still fun struck that this small town turned so drastically with what I can only explain as the Lord.
Thirdly, love over flows this place, I find myself constantly looking forward to the next day. I know there is always more waiting for me and those around me. As for our first month we grew so close and all shared the same experiences and had no other choice but to rely upon each other. I know the men in this group will not utter a word of condemnation towards me, as I like to believe they see me as a brother. I have found I will do the same for them, even more .
The teachings on basic principles and general guidelines make sense. I believe everything I learn here I can cling to for a lifetime, whether it be to trust the Lord or to warn someone not to go to the bathroom right after you.
I plan on growing this year and if it is at half the pace it has been the last three months then I can't wait to see the kind of character I kick my adult life off with .