Yesterday, I had a couple of pretty amazing things happen. The first was we got to go see the crater. We drove way up a moutain and looked down to see the crater that everyone lives in. I believe it's an extinct valcano. It was totally beautiful. Here are a couple of pictures, but you have to see it for yourself to really see the size and beauty of this thing. Pictures just don't cut it.
The second thing was I went to a worship practice with the African youth and found out that I don't know how to worship. We practiced singing songs, and that was fun and a little embarrassing (I was having trouble figuring out my part). Then we sang a song for worship. All of them emediately threw themselves completely into the worship. They closed their eyes, swayed with the music, and I could tell they were singing to God. I started to sing, but I did it in my reserved American way. I was nervous to let go and worship, and yet watching them do it made me decide to just go ahead and let go. I raised my hand, looked up at the ceiling, and started doing my best to sing do God. I'm sure I probably looked a little funny, but suddenly I didn't care as much.
I walked away from there with the realization that God doesn't care so much about how we look, or even how we worship, but that we are giving our whole hearts when we do it. I'm not saying that everyone has to worship in the African way (although it will help you get over your self-awarness), but we all need to give ourselves completely to our worship like the Africans do. I know that a lot of times I hold a little bit back. I raise my hand when everyone else is doing it. I do what is comfortable for me, and I miss some of what God is trying to give me because I don't give everything. And now I am going to change that.
I also don't that I'm the only one who has that problem. We all have areas in our lives where we are only giving God so much, where we are worried that if we go all the way we will look stupid or people will see who we really are and will reject us for it. It is something we all have to overcome, and it is something that I am having to face every day now. I like to live in my comfort zone, and here I am having to break out of it all the time. It is pretty scary, but I guess God can take care of me.
Anyway, those are my thoughts for today. Hope you all got something out of them. We are going to church in a little bit, and I'm going to have to sing and play Who Am I by casting crowns all by myself. I'm terrified, but I'm sure God has something great planned so I'm going to do it. Who knows, maybe it will even bless everyone there as well as help me get over myself. With God, anything can happen.