Journal Entry #5

08.24.13

The first India meeting was last Sunday afternoon. I decided to visit Rock Harbor Mission Viejo in the morning, something that I had been meaning to do for a while. This also meant I got to see Joy lead worship (Joy was my old roommate and is also going on the India trip). After the service we grabbed tea and continued onto the meeting together.

It was comforting to have Joy to go to the meeting with. Joy has attended almost every Rock Harbor campus at some point and makes friends easily, so she knows pretty much everyone. It came in handy, especially being someone who is easily overwhelmed by crowds of new names and faces. 

It’s crazy to think, that busy room of strangers will shortly become a room full of friends. Everyone I met seemed to be equally as fantastic. I am really excited about the group of people God has picked for our team. There is going to be a lot of laughter that’s for sure. Which is good, because senses of humor will come in handy. 

Of course one big “business” topic that came up was finances. $3,600 is a lot of money to raise in four months. It is pretty much impossible for me to save on my own, especially when other expenses are considered, like rent and grocery money. I was worrying about it a lot this week, coming up with strategic ways to save and some crazy budgeting ideas.

This morning I went on another introventure, a run on the fullerton horse trails. Mind you, it has been years since I last ran. And I will be the first to tell you, I am out of shape. I couldn’t remember how to breathe and I kept running on my toes. I was a mess, but my only concerns were avoiding getting a side cramp and not running into anything.

After a while I sort of got the hang of it and started noticing the people around me. Most were older people walking or people speeding past on bikes. But every once in a while there would be another runner, and every time they passed by they’d either smile or wave. It was like they were acknowledging the difficulty of the run and encouraging me to continue. I was reminded that although running is a competitive sport, you’re running against yourself, not the runners around you. 

And since runners are freed from the belief that they are running against you, they can come alongside you and encourage you. They can better help you move forward. To run the race that was marked out for you. Reminded me of Hebrews 12:1.

It also reminded me that I am not running this India race alone. God will provide, and often he provides through other people. Through prayers, words of encouragement, and gifts. I don’t know who my help will come from, but I know where it will come from. God will provide.