Traveling thoughts
Sacred grounds
The story so far.
Well I guess with any journey you find yourself on, what you think will happen and what actually happens are two completely separate things. The only way to find some semblance of stability is to hold on to God, and the fact that His plans are not my plans and that He will teach me all I need to know. And that is where I now find myself on a daily basis.
We, my husband Jarrod and I, started out on 20 th November 2008 in Siem Riep, Cambodia, and within the first week it became clear to me that travelling is only glamorous in retrospect.
We spent many days roaming the ancient temples of Angkor Wat, built by monks hundreds of years ago, most now covered in tree roots and moss. Apart from the sheer beauty and size of these ancient temples what struck me most was their inability to last. The hands that built them, that carved the stone so lovingly, did it so that they would stand the test of time. And yet a few hundred years later most of them are crumbling. Huge tree roots rip up massive stone blocks, tossing them aside as if they were Lego. I would find myself walking through these 'sacred' grounds praying for God to take back the land as His own, until one morning at dawn, alone in a jungle temple, God revealed to me that he need not reclaim the land, for it has been His all along. He said that I needed only to open my eyes to see how He has turned something that worshipped another god, into something that worships the only true God. His hand is at work in their jungle temples. God is showing Himself to be the only one able to control nature, the only one whose handiwork lasts, the only one worthy of all praise.
I have now seen many of the world’s wonders. The Temples of Angkor Wat, the Great Wall of China, Japan’s Himeji Castle, India’s Taj Mahal, each magnificent in their own way. But they do not compare to God's work. The Li River in China. Mt Fuji at sunrise. A lake frozen solid. A quiet moss filled garden. A gentle snow fall. And the most wondrous, majestic of all... The Serengeti . These things scream to anyone who sees them “I am God. There is none who can compare!”
I am actually writing this at the moment in the middle of the Serengeti, I have just returned from a sunrise balloon ride where I saw thousands of wildebeest on their annual migration, with zebra, impalas, giraffe, buffalo, gazelles, elephants, hyenas, cheetah, leopards and lions on the hunt. These animals have been following the path God set for them for hundreds of thousands of years, if only we could say the same.
Over these last few months God has been teaching me and showing me many things. I’ve learnt that even in the midst of His creation that I can forget the creator, and that it breaks His heart. That I can shut my eyes to poverty, seeing only the hands that ask and not the faces who beg. I’ve met Chinese Christians who huddle in houses with tape players to sing God’s praises who have more fire for God than I’ve seen at many a Christian conference. I’ve travelled with a Tanzanian preacher, whose car and money was stolen by a friend, who has no electricity in his home and has endured the worst heartache of all, the loss of his son twelve year old son to cancer. This man glowed with the love of God. This man who could be so angry with the world, rejoices every day that Jesus is his friend.
So I’ve learned to be thankful to God. For His love and provision in my life. I’ve learnt that for now at least, this is my path. It is a path of learning and growing, and it isn’t always pleasant. I’ve learnt things about myself I’d rather not have known. But I’m being refined in the fire.
But the main lesson I’ve learnt from my travels so far it is this. No matter who we are, no matter where we are, God is still God, and His unending beauty surrounds us in more ways than we can fathom. Perhaps if we opened our eyes a little wider, who knows what wonders He would show us.
So from halfway across the world I say to my sisters on the beach, I love you, I miss you, and if you want to see how I’m faring check out our blog at – http://blog.jarrodcastaing.com or you can email me at lucinda@jarrodcastaing.com
Off to South Africa next! Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe here I come!
