"With great delight I sat in his shadow and his fruit was sweet to my taste"
Song of Solomon 2:3
Like never before, I have been blessed with the opportunity to sit in His shadow. Over the past weeks, which it's hard to believe that I've been gone for that long, I have had the unprecedented opportunity to live with, for, and about His presence and will alone. I have lived with God and for God in deeper ways than ever before. Sleeping outside under a tarp, sleeping on a concrete floor with only a thin foam pad and my sleeping bag, living on a property with 60 other people and only one unisex bathroom, worshipping in Spanish though I don't understand the words, playing with area kids before they go off to school, praying with and for my new family, and being poured into in unbelievable ways… Yeah, It has been a whirlwind of new experiences and challenges. It hasn't always been easy, like when I want alone time and I have to climb onto a building roof to find it; It hasn't always been enjoyable, like when I wake up to 6 flies crawling on me and there are piles of cow poop outside our house door; and it definitely hasn't always been familiar, like when I have to throw my toilet paper into the trash instead of the toilet or have to communicate my love in broken Spanish rather than English, but ohh how sweet the fruit of all this has been. I've received revelation of God's greatness and love for me, friendship with teen boys who used to be addicted to drugs and slaves to the enemy but now lead nightly bible studies, intimacy with my Papa in heaven, encounters with Jesus in overwhelmingly beautiful ways, and countless opportunities to love on sweet, sweet brothers and sisters… I really could go on forever. It's been an experience for sure and there is still so much left. I'm still in full health, praise the Lord, and still in full expectancy. I believe that there's much more in store. So keep praying, keep trusting with me, and I challenge you to find a way and an opportunity to live in the Shadow of the Lord too.
Love and miss you all!
In Him,
-Ariel
