Like most of you, the items on my bucket list are pretty exciting; the stuff of the “Rich and Famous”. For example, New Zealand is number one on my bucket list for travel. There is so much to do and see there. You can hike in the mountains of “Middle Earth”; you can sea kayak, watch whales and penguins, travel on an alpine train or drive along their Pacific coast highway. The scenery, from pictures I’ve seen, looks spectacular. But then I second guess myself, “How do I know for sure that New Zealand is the best choice?” There are a lot of beautiful places in the world and I want to spend my money and time on the most rewarding trips. When I reflect on previous trips I’m surprised by which events I hold dearest to my heart. In Kenya it wasn’t the safari (although it was fascinating) that ranked number one. We attended a Bible study in the home of a woman who lived in a slum where there was no water or facilities and the walls of the homes were made of scrap tin and old rugs. All of the people in attendance had so very little. In fact what they did have looked like hardship and hopelessness. Yet, their faith in God was solid. I will never forget that experience. We played soccer with thirty street boys who had nothing but the cloths on their back and a plastic bottle with air plane fuel they sniffed to relieve their pain. For a few hours they forgot the agony of their lives and played soccer with the strange Wazungu (white people who run in circles) from America. After the game we were able to provide them with a lunch of bread and milk; a feast in their eyes. That was not on my bucket list, but I wouldn’t exchange it for free airline tickets to Kiwi land. I had a similar experience on a trip to South Asia. We conducted a women’s retreat in a small village in Bangladesh. Once again it was more extraordinary than our time in Thailand’s world famous resort in Phuket. These ladies were sincere women of faith and although there were 5 dialects spoken at the retreat, requiring every sentence to be translated four times, there was a sweet Christian bond that was not hindered by the language or cultural differences. I admire those women. All of this teaches me that the greatest joy in life comes from our relationship with God and with those around us. The two greatest commandments are to love God and to love other people. It may not be clear to me what should be at the top of my bucket list, but God knows. And as usual, He is spot on. It is my relationship with God and friends that make life exciting. I hope you are enjoying the relationships God has given you. They are after all, a most worthy pursuit. Marilyn
Posted on: Fri, 23 Aug 2013 13:32:51 +0000
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