Beautiful Lord

Psalm 66:1-5

"Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Say to God, 'How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to your name.' Come and see what God has done, how awesome his works in man's behalf!"

Recently my heart has been in an attitude of praise and worship. I've been inspired by the beauty that's surrounded me as I've traveled from Santiago, Chile to Northern Ireland. How can you not worship the Lord when you see all of creation worshiping Him too?! "All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name." (Psalm 66:4). "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord." (Psalm 150:6).

We spent just 7 days on the YWAM base in Santiago, Chile. Much of our time there was spent blessing the base through practical work. Because it was summer time, the base was hosting different church groups for camps and retreats, so we helped set up for these events and helped in the kitchen preparing meals. Because the base was full of people, our team had the priviledge of staying in tents outside the base director's house. We actually had a lot of fun living outside for a week, enjoying the view of the Andes Mountains against the green fields surrounding us. The week was challenging for me because of the work we were doing. The base was very busy and therefore didn't have much for us to do, and the town was a bus ride away, which we couldn't really afford to take. Our team was desiring opportunities to go out and interact with people, but our circumstances kept us in. For me the week ended up being a good time of reflection over what God has done in me and what is in store for when I return home. I enjoyed lots of quiet time with God in the middle of his creation and tried to take advantage of my last week in the sun before returning to the cold winter weather. I learned a lot that week about having expectations and being flexible. When we are placed in situations beyond our control, we can waste a lot of energy trying to make change, or we can seek God for guidance and ask Him what He wants for us to do and learn in that situation.

I am now in Northern Ireland, which is the most beautiful place I've ever seen! I don't even know how to describe it--it's like a scene out of a movie--beautiful parks, cathedrals, bridges and quiet streams. We are staying in Rostrevor at the new YWAM base which just recently moved from Belfast, another city in Northern Ireland. The new property here has a unique history. It used to be the property of the Christian Renewal Center which served as a refuge for Protestants and Catholics in the midst of conflict in Ireland from 1974. The base is settled between the Mourne Mountains and Carlingford Lough, a small body of water separating Northern Ireland from the Irish Republic. The YWAM base has taken over this property to continue the ministry of reconciliation in Ireland. They have named the base "An Cuan" which is the Irish word for harbor. The base aims to be like a harbor, a place where people can come to be refreshed and re-fueled before they are sent back out into the world. They want to be a mission-sending ministry, specifically focusing on sending people to places of conflict around the world that are in need of reconciliation. I have felt the refreshment ever since I stepped foot into this "harbor." As I mentioned, I've been so inspired to just praise God and thank Him for who He is and for what He is doing in and around me. I have found refreshment sitting in this room in the house that overlooks the inlet, with my Bible in my lap and a cup of tea in my hand. God's creation beautifully reflects His character. As I look out that window from Northern Ireland, I can see the Republic of Ireland. This land across the inlet is incredible--a stretch of mountains casting out shades of greens and browns, with distant homes settled into the base along the water. It looks so peaceful, but yet the history of this country would be described as anything but peaceful. The position of this YWAM property is so strategic. Being here, I can feel the presence of God and His desire to bring reconciliation to this country as well as reconciliation to His children. He is so beautiful!

We are here on the base at a pivitol time--in just a few weeks, the first DTS on this property will be arriving. So far we've been helping out with practical work around the base to prepare for the DTS. We also want to be a blessing to the staff here, doing all we can to help encourage and strengthen them before things get busy. Next week we will go out into the community more to meet and talk with people. Ireland is famous for their pubs, which is a great place to meet people. We've heard how much Irish people enjoy talking and telling stories, so I'm sure we will have some good conversations!

With just 2 weeks left, it's easy to let your mind, body, and attitude wind down. I'm praying that God gives me the strength to press on until the very end. Our team is trying to enjoy our last few weeks together. As you could imagine, spending the last 10 weeks all together all the time has made us a close little family.

I can't belive this experience is coming to a close. It's been amazing. I'm looking forward to returning to the Oval to be reunited with the other 2 outreach teams. It will be a quick 2 weeks of debriefing and preparing to head back to "the real world." I'm excited to discover with the Lord the next adventure He will take me on when I get home!