This past weekend, we decided to take the team away for a 3 day retreat to Kijabe. Kijabe is a beautiful area just northwest of Nairobi, only about an hour drive. It’s up in the mountains overlooking the
Great Rift Valley. The last day we were there, I wrote this…
Our 3 days here has been exactly what we all needed, both individually and as a group. This morning I just laid in the grass overlooking the
Great Rift Valley enjoying the warm sun on my face and the cool breeze blowing over me. God’s peace settled upon me and I felt Him revealing himself to me. The new position I am in here in
Kenya with this team has at times felt heavy. I have 3 other leaders that are incredible that have helped so me so much, but carrying the overall responsibility of the team is a lot to carry. These past 2 weeks I’ve learned more than ever before how to run to God and allow Him to take this burden. Although this position in leadership can be lonely at times, I’ve felt God’s presence so strong lately. With the weight of everything here, I’ve learned something significant through all this newness. I’ve learned the importance of being real. Real with the students I’m leading, real with the other 3 leaders, and real with my Father. There’s something freeing about being able to come to the One who knows me better than I know myself, and to say, “this is who I am…this is where I’m at…this is what is hard, overwhelming, and scary…this is how I feel…this is me.” And He has taken me in and empowered me through my dependency on Him. He has wrapped me in His arms and held me. He has lightened my load. As the family leader here, I’m still ultimately the one who has to carry the responsibility, but He has shifted the load upon my shoulders and shown me how to better carry it. And it doesn’t feel much like a burden now.
I look across this hillside and see the students scattered about spending intimate time with their Father and my heart smiles. What a privilege I have to be here to walk before and alongside these students who are seeking God’s face and taking part in what He is doing in
Kenya. There’s a great expectancy in my heart, an expectancy of the great things that God is doing and will continue to do here.
I thank God for bringing me to this place where He has once again revealed himself to me. The cool breeze refreshes my body as God refreshes my spirit and shows me another glimpse of His love for me.
