Waiting...

Well, I’m off today for London. For those of you who don’t know, I’ll be spending 6 weeks in foggy London town studying at Middlesex University. I’m taking two courses, Politics of the European Union and Multi-faith London. Now the former will likely look much like any other poli-sci class, however, the latter will be a bit unorthodox. I will meet in a classroom twice for the religion course, on the first day and the last. In between then, I will have a list of churches, temples, mosques, and museums to visit. I will keep a portfolio of what I learn. I don’t know much more than that at the time. This wonderful schedule leaves me 4 day weekends and plenty of time to explore England and possibly a few surrounding countries. I hope to grow and learn a lot over the next few weeks, and I plan to share what I do learn with those who are daring enough to read.

And so the learning began with the first day of my journey. I have spent the past two days at Ravencrest Chalet in Estes Park, Colorado. It’s a Torchbearer’s Bible school; check it out. Anyway, I was there with Fellowship Bible Church Student Ministries and a few guys that I am very blessed to get to hang out with. These two days probably deserve a post of their own, but I haven’t had enough time to process the experience. This morning I had to leave the camp early to catch my flight to England. I got up at 4:45 am to see off a few brave souls who were undertaking a gruesome hike today. I ate breakfast with them and hugged them all goodbye. I then took a shower and got my things together. I woke up my dear friend Cameron Heger to say goodbye and then went up the hill to wait for the shuttle to pick me up. It was supposed to retrieve me at 6:30, and I being a little antsy about the trip arrived at the top of the hill 15 minutes early to be safe. (Not that early huh? Well it is for me) It was a cool, brisk Rocky Mountain morning. There was a thick fog lingering from the previous day’s storm. Draped across the ridge silhouetted by the sunrise, the fog glazed the landscape, giving the illusion the it was painted on the sky. I sat on a rock and waited.

6:30. A car came tearing up the driveway to the chalet. I leapt up and grabbed my bags, but was let down as a truck turned into the construction site. As the minutes passed, my anxiety crescendoed into panic. 6:40. A mere 10 minutes late and I’m starting to run scenarios of what I could do if the shuttle didn’t come. Mind that my flight wasn’t until 12:45. That didn’t matter at the time. I rationally realized that my panic was not justified, so I started analyzing it (a very relaxing activity in unsettling times). I asked what it was about my situation that caused the panic. I thought about being in Colorado at a place that I am fairly familiar, but not quite at home. I was waiting for a ride to take me to a plane to a new country where I will know no one. Plenty of things that would give rise to anxiety, but I was looking for the needlepoint that caused the anxious prick. I thought about the time I drove my friend Shama to the airport to fly to Connecticut for Thanksgiving with a friend. I’m not sure what made me think of this memory, but it pointed me to the issue. That was the role I was used to playing, the driver, the person with the resources. I am accustomed to being independent to a certain degree. God, most times through my parents, has provided everything I’ve needed. I’m able to be in control and do things at my pace and convenience. Yet here I was, completely dependent on someone I didn’t know to come through for me. I was stranded with no means of getting to the airport if this one person didn’t show up. The helplessness terrified me. In the moment I realized how weak my practical faith was. I knew very little about trusting in God. I made it my habit to always have a solution, a plan, and a back up ready. It’s little and simple, but it’s what God taught me this morning waiting on a rock in Estes Park.

The shuttle picked me up at 6:45.