Prepare yourself for a tale, told in a similar style to “Lord of the Rings” or “The Secret Garden.” Yet where these stories base themselves in the fictitious, the elements of the story you are about to read are completely true and happened to this modern-day adventurer! (If you would like to read actual accounts, check out my other blog at summersmith.theworldrace.org.) It is an epic story with battles and love, monsters and heroes, danger and peace, almosts and successes, risks and failures – all God-breathed and useful for teaching. I believe this story will bring glory to God, the author and creator of love, the designer of relationships, as it showcases how God works on behalf of those who wait for Him. Welcome to my world.
At the same time, Summerah was pursuing her heart’s desire to travel around the world to tell people about her Creator and the amazing relationship she had with Him. She looked at it as another opportunity to spend a full year completely dedicated and in love with the Lover of her soul. She pondered how she would maintain her relationship with her Beloved, for you see two of His most amazing powers were invisibility and omniscience, whereby He could always be with her yet never be seen. Summerah loved the idea that she would never be lonely wherever her travels took her, yet she worried that men traveling with her could sway her heart away from her True Love. Desiring that He would always remain her heart’s True Beat, she committed her heart to Him for the entire traveling year and then wrote in her diary three ways she would know if a man was ever to be allowed within the alcoves of her deep and tender heart: he would pursue her heart after the year of commitment, he would pursue her, and he would love the Creator passionately (and maybe have similar experiences with Him).
Summerah left for her sea adventure with her convictions firmly in place in her mind and heart, set for a beautiful time in the natural world far away from the distractions of city life where she could breathe in the presence of her Lover. After a day of sun, surf, and hiking, Summerah returned to her humble lodgings – the hovel she found in the woods on the edge of the great sea. She built a fire in the clearing as she soaked in the beauty of the sunlit day, watching light dance across the waves of the sea. Suddenly, she felt drops of rain and grew slightly disheartened that the beauty of the day was ending. She retreated to the hovel as thunder and lightning sparked and crashed around her. “O Dear Creator,” she lamented, “how will I see the beauty of the stars tonight with this storm?” Immediately she heard His familiar whisper, “Do not worry about these circumstances.” Once the storm passed and the rains stopped, Summerah walked to the edge of the sea to watch the clouds roll out over the water. There in the northern sky she spotted a hopeful rainbow in the midst of the clouds and a shimmering sunset behind her through the breaks in the storm followed by an evening mist pushing itself onto the shore surrounding her in its damp and humid breath. After gazing at the darkening twilight sky, Summerah returned to her still-sputtering fire and stoked it back to full-strength. As she stared into the embers, she saw a beam of light fall over her and, curious, she turned around to see the moon beaming in a cloudless sky cutting a path across the sea, the beach, and entering into the clearing where she was sitting. His familiar whisper came then, “Come dance with me.” So, she roused herself from the fire, walked to the beach and waltzed in the spotlight of the moon with the stars standing guard as her watchful companions from above. That night as Summerah prepared for sleep, she found a cleft in a rock on the edge of the sea where she could sleep while delighting in the beauty of the night. As she laid snuggled into the rock beneath the stars, she imagined the arms of her Beloved wrapped tightly around her, holding her close. She woke in the morning to mist on the water as the sun peaked over the horizon, shrouded in clouds yet beaming out its radiance. Pondering the beauty around her, she realized that neither she nor a man in her life could ever have planned such a perfect getaway, where even the weather was accounted for. She looked forward to her next adventure of traveling the world with new eyes; ready to be completely committed to her Beloved, not turning her affections from Him, and using the time to delight in the Creator and all He had bestowed on the Earth.
About a month passed and it was time for Summerah to meet up with other adventurers like herself to prepare for the grand world trip. While spending time with other young men and women warriors, she was relieved to see the openness of all of them as they worked to develop a fellowship before leaving on the quest for the world on behalf of the Creator. They worked through strenuous group exercises, combat training, and survival classes in order to prepare for any such scenarios awaiting them on the world trek. It was during one of these classes that it happened. Summerah noticed one of the young warriors, Montaña, as he took leadership of his group and raced ahead in a matter of urgency to siphon water from a primitive water system to supply his team with necessary sustenance. Perhaps it was his courage and bravery or maybe his selflessness that first drew her attention, but it frightened her how quickly her heart was swayed. She immediately took the necessary precautions of barricading her heart and giving up this “transgression” of her emotions to her Creator, yet she couldn’t quite forget how she felt. For the next few days, she guarded her heart, pretended she had noticed nothing, and tried to forget what her heart had experienced. However, the moment of truth came when she had time to discuss her training with one of the group leaders. During this discussion, the leader asked, “Do you have any concerns in preparation for this worldwide adventure?”
Summerah responded with the truth, “I am concerned about the men who may be in my fellowship. I don’t want to be distracted by them and in the past, I have struggled with vying for the attention of men, especially warriors.”
“In that case,” the leader responded wisely, “are there any men in our group that you’re concerned about?”
Summerah answered resolutely, “Montaña.”
Part 2 Coming Soon!
The suspense is incredible. .. . .
ReplyDeleteLove you!
Diane