The Dreamer

Reading a story in the dead of the night,
Hiding under her covers with a flashlight,
The little girl learns about legends of old-
Of exciting folktales a young girl should know-
Until thoughts begin to float to faraway times.
She falls into dreamland- the clock gently chimes.
She's a joyful part of the battles and fame,
And through many adventures, she earns a name-
The Princess of Dreams, Fine Lady of Stories.
The girl fights off monsters and enters the glory.
She rides a white horse and wears a gold crown,
And soars through the sky as the sun shines down.
She meets a good prince and she marries him too,
And she governs a kingdom in love and in truth,
But as the girl fights the battles that play in her head,
Her mother checks and finds her untucked in bed.
She laughs, "That silly girl at last fell asleep."
And she tucks the child in and kisses her cheek.

By Emily Whelchel
1-9-09

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I am only creating a possible scenario here, but maybe the original builders of this property started this house with exciting dreams of a life in the country.  Maybe they wanted a home overlooking the sunset.  Maybe they wanted to be able to see the stars every night, and smell the grass when they walked out their front door. 

But then, maybe their dreams began to fade when the harsh reality of life set in.  Finances, job loss, other shiny things that begged for them to purchase instead.  Maybe they found a fancy condo in New York and decided that city life would be better suited for their lifestyles. 

Whatever happened, this family must have begun the home with excitement, and then the excitement somehow faded away, until the home was nothing but an aging, unfinished structure, something that will sit on the face of a cliff until it crumbles away into nothing.  The stairs, the house, all of it has become worthless, unfruitful.

Sometimes our walk with Christ may become just like the staircase.  We start out excited, following His every command with pure joy.  We build our relationship with God a little more each day and we're happy about it.  But then other things come along- finances, a hectic life, a tragedy- and Christianity doesn't seem to suit our life the way we want it to... it seems much easier to focus on something else.  We don't have enough time for Him.  We find ourselves taking a break from a lifestyle that used to be lived out with eagerness and excitement.  We keep moving farther away until our relationship with Him is nothing but a crumbling structure on the face of a hill, fading a little bit more each day. 

I encourage you, don't let your relationship with Christ become like these stairs.  Don't let it be unfruitful.  Don't let it lead to nothing in the end.  Even when the excitement wears away, stay strong.  Continue the plan God has for you.  Don't let your life end up completely pointless, like useless stairs that will never help anyone.

-July 1, Wednesday
In Air to Houston, Texas-

We finally are on our way... to Houston, but that is better than nothing. Saying goodbye to everyone at home was difficult. I cried like a baby. I still feel emotional, but I am handling myself well enough. This is almost too good to be true. Everything I've talked about, dreamed about, for the past few years, is finally becoming a reality.

I am going to Africa. I'm fulfilling God's calling.

I feel a great sense of both peace and terror at the same time, if that is possible. I know that God will take care of me. I am safe in the shadow of His wings. The terror I feel is not for my well-being. I am leaving that all up to the Lord. I'm scared about my reaction to this trip. During these next two weeks, I want to do all that God wants me to do in Kenya. I don't want to let Him down. I don't want to be less than who He has called me to be. The thought terrifies me.

Psalm 91 was read on Air1 today while I was on my way to the airport. Psalm 91 is a scripture that God has given to me for this trip in a way. When I heard this chapter that I have studied so hard being read over the radio right before I embarked on this journey, a huge wave of emotion nearly overwhelmed me.

I truly feel that right now, I am where God wants me to be.

-Houston Airport-

We are currently enduring a three hour layover. We have about an hour and a half left to go. The flight was uneventful. Everyone is slowly bonding, and at this point, we are all casual friends. There are only a few who really know what to expect; the rest of us can only visualize possibilities of what Kenya will be like. We all keep telling each other, "I'm going to Africa." It is almost unbelievable.

Our next flight is to Amsterdam, and we're going to arrive at 8:30 in the morning. Yuck. An all night flight. I dread it.

For lunch, I had a cup of yogurt and granola from Starbucks and a slice of cheese pizza from Caffe Famiglia. It was very good, but the entire meal cost me eleven dollars! Ridiculous. At Luke's football party last week, they served pizza, and I sadly declared that it was my last slice until I returned home from Kenya. Thank goodness, I was able to have one last slice to remember while I'm left to eat monkey heads and grasshoppers and who knows what else while I'm in Africa? It is a little disturbing to think about.

I'm not emotional anymore, hardly at all. My frantic waves of homesickness have all but disappeared, and as always, I'll continue to get better until I don't even want to go home. I feel very peaceful and tranquil. I know that with God, everything is going to be okay.