new year

enough light for the next step…

If there is one thing I can say about 2012 so far is that I think God enjoys taking me by surprise. Lately, He’s been surprising me with many unexpected gifts, one of them being the opportunity to go to Thailand and meet the farmers that grow the coffee we sell at Land of a Thousand Hills. I’ve not yet had the chance to visit any of our coffee communities and I’ll be the first of us that gets to see the work being done in Thailand, which is such an honor and a blessing.

While I’m so excited about this trip, I feel at a bit of a loss as to what to expect. I’m a big-picture kind of girl and I’m excited to see first-hand the amazing work being done there through coffee and our partner organizations. But what I’m really hoping is to be awake to the small things that might be otherwise missed. I’ve long desired to spend my life fighting injustice and am so grateful for the opportunity to take yet another step down that path. While I know I can’t solve the problems of sex-trafficking, poverty, and injustice on my own, I have faith in the One that gives the light for each step. My prayer is that my heart will be quickened to voice of the Spirit and that I will find that the little light He’s given me to carry is more than enough.

This quote from Henri Nouwen has encouraged me as I take these next steps in Thailand and wait on the many more surprises that are in store for me.

“…Mostly we have just enough light to see the next step: what we have to do in the coming hour or the following day. The art of living is to enjoy what we can see and not complain about what remains in the dark. When we are able to take the next step with trust that we will have enough light for the step that follows, we can walk through life with joy and be surprised at how far we go. Let’s rejoice in the little light we carry and not ask for the great beam that would take all shadows away.”