I'm going to start by saying, I have many amazing friends (and family of course) that I would have an incredibly difficult time living without! In fact, I could not. No one can survive alone. One such friend has inspired me ever since I met her in middle school. She's in Maryland these days doing research, but paid a visit recently. When she returned to her current home she ran a marathon and qualified for Boston. I told you she was inspiring! Anyway while she was here, she gave me a book and chocolate. (This girl knows me well.) Plus she lent me another book. It's Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson. I love it! It's definitely what I needed right now. It makes you think. It's a good book to use to give you a fresh perspective and in so doing, evaluate your life. It's not just something to read; it's something to challenge the way you are living.
For Argentina, I'm adopting the mantra: Otro dia, otra adventura (Another day, another adventure.) I want to break free from the mundane and routine and passionately pursue God every day. Faith is a grand adventure and every moment of life is precious.
The book reminded me of the "ordinary" miracles we are surrounded by and take for granted--the earth reliably spinning in orbit, water's amazing life-sustaining properties, stars, amino acids, etc. Occasionally, I stop long enough to ponder these mysteries and be grateful, but not nearly enough.
Some other good quotes: "I want to see God do things in me and through me that I am absolutely incapable of so I can't possibly take credit for them." How awesome would that be?
"We don't really start living until we find something worth dying for." Jesus lived because he had a lot to die for.
"Live today like it is the first day and the last day of your life."
"New places open us up to new experiences. They get us out of our routine and help us see God with new eyes." This is so true. It explains why trips and retreats are so effective at refreshing us and changing our outlook on life. It gets me even more excited for Argentina. The newness I will experience in going there will open my eyes to seeing God more fully.
Did you know that Sabbath means "to catch one's breath"? because I had never thought of it in those terms. I know it has a very religious connotation with being a holy day.
When I think about taking a day regularly to rest, it seems counterproductive, but we need that time to catch our breath, don't we? After a while the pace of this life wears us out. Pace is important. You can't start a marathon sprinting or you'll be hurting.
The chase has begun. I'm ready.
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