I did it!! I walked the most beautiful walk in the world, and I have to say it did live up to its expectations!!! Confidently, the most beautiful hike I have ever been on, but that doesn't mean I am going to stop trying to find something more beautiful in the world. That will never stop.
As I say this, I think back to my experience deep in the Fiordland National Park and I wonder how, how could anything be more beautiful? A conglomeration of the best things that have ever entered my mind, all in one place. The diversity was and still is fascinating. Diversity is what makes the New Zealand islands so appealing. Driving through this country from top to bottom has been such a stimulating experience. I have been fortunate enough to see and experience things that are sometimes thought to only exist in your imagination or on a movie screen. I am able to physically breath them in, touch them, and experience their beauty for myself. Not living my life through a screen, in a book or in a dream but in true reality!! These experiences have lit a fire under me that makes me long for discovery and pursuing God's creation as much as possible. It also makes me appreciate the small things in life. How many times during a typical day does anyone pull off to the side of the road to take time to sit and enjoy a field of grass or take a picture of a rock or a flower or even enjoy getting passed by cars over and over again because you are enjoying taking in the journey instead of worrying about getting to your destination. On second thought, maybe it's just because our van can't go faster than 70 mph haha.
Even though this country is great and beautiful, I do miss the small things back home. Like a home cooked meal by my Mom or Mum as they call it here, in our new house. I find myself thinking about people that I miss and look forward to sitting down and sharing my stories with. I just talked to my parents, my brother, and a couple of my friends for the first time a couple of days back and I didn't realize how much I missed them and how much I had experienced without them and how much I had to say to just give them a taste of what is going on here. I guess I just got caught up in it all here that I didn't really feel their absence until I heard their voice. It was refreshing and needed!
The Lord has blessed me beyond all belief. His guiding hand continues to surprise me as I go from place to place, he takes care of me. My faith in Christ's plan for my life is growing everyday. I was about to bungee jump a couple of days ago, until they said that I couldn't because of maintenance, but before I jumped my mind was pacing back and forth in anxious fear of what I was about to do. This was the 3rd highest bungee in the world!! I thought to myself, "What am I getting myself into... I don't want to do this. This is going to be terrible!" This bungee, for some reason had been a sour pit in my stomach this entire trip. So, there I was sitting on a rock wall beside my van, thinking and praying about this situation. Then, I felt a calming spirit come over me and I suddenly thought that this was going to be a leap of faith. I felt that when I go bungee jumping it will be the ultimate surrender to one thing, the bungee. Will it hold? Will I bounce back up or keep falling? This spirit spoke to me and made me realize that this is the type of trust that I should have towards Christ. An utter surrender to the Word. Putting my life out there and letting him catch me. It also allowed me release the knot in my stomach and enjoy the adventure that the day was going to bring, knowing full well that He was walking with me every step of my journey. It was a beautiful image. To know that God could use something like bungee jumping to reflect the trust I ought to have in His Son. It's simple really. Just step off the platform. Thats all you have to do. But why is it so hard? I trust the bungee cord. What am I so afraid of? The fall? The fear of not having control of my life? What is it? Is my faith in the bungee not strong enough? Do I need to read my bible more before I jump? Do I need to grow up before I can jump? Maybe my intellect has not reached a certain level yet for me to have that kind of faith? I think I'll sit this one out and wait until I am stronger. I need to see proof that the bungee will hold and will not let me go before I can let my life go off the edge without any control myself.
But this is not the thoughts that Christ invited us into. He wants us to risk. He wants us to see Him and know that he will catch us when we trust fully in his will. Doubt will lead to death. "Sitting this one out" is not the way God desires our lives to be lived. He longs for us to see him through his son and surrender our control to his plan and will. Christ was in perfect harmony with God's will, and that is why he was so effective in this world.
That is what I have learned through my fears of bungee jumping. Now I cannot wait to get on that platform and just jump into thin air and know that the bungee will hold!!! It's going to be wonderful!
That is another great part of this trip, the time that I have to think. It is a blessing! I long to hear God's voice. I know it is there, but I need to let him have some of my time to hear him and that is what happened when I was contemplating the bungee on the rocks that morning. He spoke, and I finally had time to listen...
Jesus said:
"For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind." John 9: 39
"If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8: 31-32
Paul said:
"For Freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery (sin)" Galatians 5:1
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Rob, Collins, and Me at the end of the Track
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