There comes such wonder in life when we stop giving God expectations and limits, and become open to His plans. I had no idea what to expect going into this trip, but what I had hoped for was to maybe get to know the girls I’ll be living with for the next year through spending time with them, and also become more independent through taking care of myself and my D-group throughout the week. I knew we would be traveling, cooking meals, setting up camp, and taking care of our gear. What I didn’t anticipate at all was just how close a group of girls could get when they completely depended on trust and trust alone that they would support each other through the week, and hold each other up to the high standard of love God calls us to live in. And also trust that they won’t walk into the bushes while you’re peeing…
Trust also came into play every day when I caught myself being afraid; afraid of the rushing ice water, afraid of what the girls thought of me, afraid of falling down Vision Quest mountain, afraid of making mistakes while setting up camp or cooking meals, and I’d remind myself that “God did not give me a spirit of fear” (2 Tim. 1:8), and that in being afraid, I was forgetting to trust in Him. How insulting! God is so powerful; He’s greater than all our struggles and He is attentive to the smallest of details, down to every hair on our heads. He is beyond trustworthy, and I practiced trusting in Him every day of this trip, which brought me a peace that passes all reason. I found peace while my legs were giving out from exhaustion in the middle of the steepest mountain I’ve ever climbed, and in the middle of large waves threatening to engulf our entire canoe. It was so unlike me, but so much like God!
There are many experiences from this trip that will stay with me forever. A lot of them were made amongst my D-group, like when Ashley and I would talk late into the night, and when we would all huddle around our sweet campfire that Nicole made, eating dinner that Nicole also made, and being super fast and efficient at setting up camp with LaDauna’s well of knowledge, and we had so many laughs with Katelyn and Tina in our group, with Katelyn’s jokes and crazy imitations and Tina’s quiet but hilarious comments, especially about random culture differences. The hiking and canoeing also stood out to me; the glory of being immersed in raw nature while canoeing and also looking at the view from the top of that mountain reflect the Creator’s own glory. And of course I’ll always remember the monumental last night heart to heart talks with the whole group, when tears, laughter and love were intimately shared amongst my newly found sisters in Christ. God is faithful, and there is so much life to be lived when we go out of our comfort zones on adventures and trust in His goodness.
Danielle Kroeger- Discover Student
Never seen a beettr post! ICOCBW