Wide open spaces

Grace. It's a beautiful thing. The one word that we have really journeyed on this year. And every day I continue to learn more and more. And of course our Luke 10 journey was no different.

Grace. The only reason why the God of the universe in His all-knowingness would choose to speak to us, in our brokenness, in our selfishness, in our little faith. The only reason why the God who is able to do all things chooses 4 South Africans to go to a small town in the Andes mountains of Ecuador.

Grace. The reason why I am allowed to seek the Kingdom of God and find it. And to discover what that looks like -  Being Jesus. Loving people. Spending time. I had this one moment on our journey when I was walking by myself and sitting looking at the expanse of mountains unfolding before me when I saw a lady doing her washing. I went up to her to ask her if I could help. And it took some explaining because of my limited Spanish and she probably thought I was crazy but then I ended up helping her take off the washing, folding up the clothes and just having the opportunity to share and be there, play with the kids and randomly serve. And all that I really said was that it is because of Jesus.    In our time-driven society we often rush past each other without really seeing the person in front of you, the hurt and the need. In that small seemingly mundane moment I realised the immense privilege of having time to spend and just stop and serve that one lady. And that is the kingdom.  Being Jesus. Loving people. Spending time. That is grace.

Grace. A God that is so intimately involved in our lives that amidst worries about food and a place to sleep He also spoils us in very unique ways. We were blessed amongst other things with coffee, roses, a swim in hot springs and coconut ice-cream! Four unique things for four very unique people; each having the name (and prayers) of one of my teammates written across it. An almighty God choosing to be personal. That is grace.

Grace. The reason that Creator God chose to reflect something of His glory and character in the people He created in His image. One of the biggest lessons I've learned this year is to discover the beauty of God hidden in the character of people all over the world. Mira was a town with a beautiful view of the mountains but walking through the streets it felt as though everything was covered by a thin layer of dust. And in our meetings with people on the street, in experiencing the hospitality of our men of peace, in the shared laughter with the kids or the disabled women in the flower-shop, God spoke to me about His people. About the way that all people were created as gold, reflecting something of God's glory. But sometimes it is covered by a layer of dust and it is so easy to be deterred by that. To be offended by people's reaction or their sin or the walls that they have built around their heart.  But if we're willing to look past that, we will also discover something of God hidden by the dust of this world. And that's grace.

Grace. The wonder that despite my mistakes and wrong turns I am still able to walk in God's good and perfect will. In the Message version of Romans 5 it speaks of standing in the wide open spaces of God's grace. And that is without a doubt the biggest thing I take from our faith journey. I am, in many ways and things, a FOMO (fear of missing out). God has spoken to me regarding this multiple times this year but it is still something that I struggle with. I sometimes find myself paralysed by the thought that I may miss God's will! Add to that someone that hates making decisions and you've got quite the Theofaustics-case. But somewhere during the time of freedom in knowing God is speaking to me, I found myself really standing in the wide open spaces of His grace. Discovering that the narrow way isn't so narrow that I might fall off the sides if I make a wrong decision. That actually God's grace allows for me to dance and be creative in the space that He provides. That my mind really is being transformed to know the will of the Father - without having to think about it or worry about it. I discovered that by being me I am living in His will because He is living inside of me. And that is grace!

By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that’s not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise. (Romans 5:1, 2 MSG)