March 18, 2009
Windy Gap:
It seems it is always the trips that I get least excited about are the ones that change my life forever….funny how that works.
Today I arrived at the Young Life Windy Gap camp. I’m up here for the UCF first annual staff retreat. This place is absolutely mind blowing; Mountains, lake, water sides, diving boards, zip lines, cabins, big fire places, sand volleyball, no cell phone service, 70 degree weather, oh and did I forget to mention……….awesome people. David, Mendy, Keri Burns, Paula, Mitch, Nate, Lindsay, Gray.
On this day I experienced the greatest hour of my entire life. From 2:47-3:55pm I laid out in the wilderness on a bench with my arms spread and my feet crossed as if I was on a cross. My mind has never been so clear. I had an out-loud conversation with my Creator. I commanded the Holy Spirit to dominate my body and take total control. I want nothing more than to be lead by the Spirit and do whatever is necessary to carry out the business of The Kingdom. I’m tired of getting in the way. I’m tired of my flesh slowing things down. If I maintain the Spirit as the conductor of this body, true productivity will acure.
I cried today……a lot. It felt good. I was over due. I cried when I prayed for David and Mendy. I cried when I explained the overwhelming experience that I had with my Creator from 2:47-3:55pm. I cried when I talked about my brother. I cried when Mitch talked about his sons. I cried when I closed out our man time with prayer. My eyes are pretty dry right now.
As I lay there, in the wilderness, in the shape of a cross, I tried to experience the thought process of Christ. Every time I felt my heart beat I imagined more of my blood forced out of my wounds. I thought about the point of no return. The point of no return is when they drove the nails through His hands and feet for if for some reason someone was to stop the process at that point, and the nails were pulled back out, the feet would not work right ever again and the hands could never function correctly. As I laid there I wiggled my fingers and wondered what it would have felt like doing that with a nail through the center of my forearm bone. When I move my fingers I can feel ligaments moving, and I considered the thought of how that would actually work out with a nail being ran straight through them. Oh what an indescribable pain that must have been. Along with that, being spit on by the mockers, stared at by your family and friends with pity and sorrow on their minds. I do not know pain.
I got a little star gazing time in as well. I laid down and stared up at the never ending vastness of space. Out of all of that creation, who am I to be called God’s masterpiece? As I laid there I began to say out loud, “God, I would sure love to see a…..” and sure enough, a shooting star bolted across the sky. It lasted about four seconds and then it was gone. The odds of a piece of space debris entering the earth’s atmosphere over this part of the world at that exact moment are…..well, lets just say the odds were not really favoring the accurance. But you know what, it happened.
Again, as I laid in that cross formation I saw a bird fly over. Was the purpose of that bird’s entire life to fly over me at that moment in time? If it was raised and hatched by its mother three years ago, received a proper diet and stayed alive just so we could cross paths? Is that how God works? No other human being may ever see that specific bird except me. Did God create that bird to just remind me of Him and His awesomeness? Cause if that is the case, then it worked. Thanks for the reminder God!
BT
