An Unsuspecting Travel Writer

 I've never thought of myself as being a travel writer. I don't fly around the world, going to new places to discover the culture, food, and traditions of a certain spot and its people, documenting my finds along the way. I'm actually quite the homebody - I love my community and my peaceful home and my own people here, leading me to live a quite low-key life in one of the most beautiful and sought-after tourist destinations on the planet. Having lived in Alaska all my life, my thought has always been, why go get your tourist fix somewhere else when you haven't even seen most of your own state? Seriously... in a land mass twice the size of Texas, you never run out of places to see and new ways to explore the bit of God's country where you live.   

But then I stumbled on an article from a travel magazine that I like to read and the writer was explaining about what, in his humble opinion, travel writing really is about: hitting the trail and seeing whatever shows up. How the journey reveals what the story is and why it's important to set out with eyes and ears open and a mind ready to discover what's to come. And suddenly, I realize that this blog, my podcast, my social media, and everything else I've put into written form for so long is its own variety of travel writing... just from my couch in my own house. 

See, when I started to share my thoughts out loud via this blog ten years ago, all I wanted was to put something out there that maybe helped others find their way. By expressing the inner workings of my own heart and mind, it was my desire that they would be a light for other hurting people to find their way to Grace. After all, the subtitle of this blog is "where the hurting find hope." That was, and has always been, the goal. The motive has never changed. All I've done is simply tell what I saw along the journey at any point - some of which have been extremely painful and dark. There have been mountain vistas as well as valleys so low I wondered if I'd ever make it out. Such is the human experience. 

Like an actual travel writer who gives images and text that allow others a peak into what to expect should they ever land in that country or city, I have been given the mission to tell what I've seen so that when someone else walks through trauma or loss, they know a little bit of what is coming. Just as every tourist will see something a little different even when experiencing the exact same place, each person's mental health and life journey will vary. However, having someone give you a guidebook or map to show you the ropes a bit gives some peace of mind that somehow, everything is going to be okay and you'll learn what you're supposed to while you're here in this space. 

I never intended that this become my calling. I am, by all accounts, an unsuspecting travel writer. I'm on divine assignment to tell what I see and learn and put it out into the world so that others can know they are not alone and the Heavenly Father sees, knows, and loves them through their darkest moments. I've been sent on ahead to perhaps smooth the way for someone, just as others have gone ahead of me and done the same. 

This is the obligation we have as survivors of the fires of life - to take what we've been through and let God use it in redemptive ways. We won't all end up telling our stories in detail or putting them out there for the world to see. But we will have conversations and opportunities when other hurting people cross our path in daily life. Will we answer the call to show up in their pain in the spirit of the Balm of Gilead with hands that desire to bind up wounds and make broken hearts whole? 

It's become clear to me as I've gone along that the more I follow Jesus into unknown places and plum the depths of His endless lessons He has in store for me, I am not doing this just for myself. Healing is never just about your own story. It's also for the ones you'll come in touch with because the work you do in your own life emanates outward toward your family, friends, coworkers, and anybody else you meet along the way. While you may have suffered a lot on your own, you aren't traveling this path by yourself because everyone else somewhere on this road also, including me. We're all growing and letting go and figuring this out together, and we need the encouragement of one another to keep us going. This pilgrimage is not for the faint of heart and we need to hear the promise over and over again that the end is worth it. Because it is. 

The hidden work of inner transformation is always a worthy journey to take and I can attest to both the difficulty and the reward of bravely deciding to go there. Maybe I didn't set out to do this with a larger goal than just to heal myself but I now accept that I'm also here for you too, friends. That what I see and what I hear and what I find on this journey to Grace is available for anybody if only they have eyes to see, ears to hear, and an open mind and heart... just like that magazine writer said. 

So here's to more years of doing this thing called life, with all the challenges and hopes and dreams and difficulties I has to offer, knowing that we have a faithful One going ahead of us who makes all of this worth it in the end. We've been some pretty crazy places thus far! Where do you think we'll go next?