Once upon a time, there was a boy born in 1898 who grew up playing in the fields and forests around Belfast, Northern Ireland. He would one day write a book you probably know well: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
It is insane to me that in just a few hours I will also step foot in the very land that helped inspire Narnia. Yes, that’s right, I’m on my way to Ireland!!
Since I was in middle school, Ireland was my number one country in the world I wanted to visit for so many reasons: the landscape, the castles, a dash of my heritage, and because my favorite band at the time was from there (Rend Collective btw).
It’s such a funny God-thing because my university takes a mission trip there every single summer. I first heard about the trip when I was a freshman, but it wasn’t on my radar at the time.
Fast forward to last Fall, I was in the car with one of my best friends. She looked over at me with a mischievous smile. “Want to go to Ireland with me?”
“Yes,” I said without hesitation. “But wait, actually, why?”
“For the mission trip,” she said.
“I’ll pray about it.” For a bit, I was terrified that God would say no or not this summer, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt drawn to the trip. Still, a part of me hesitated. What if I only wanted to go because the place felt so magical? What if I only wanted to go because I’d felt drawn there for years?
Cue the Lord giving me a nice spiritual smack upside the head. I could almost hear Him whisper to my heart, “Did you ever think that maybe you wanted to go there so bad because I wanted you to go there, too??”
Okay, God. I hear you.
And so, I’m about to board a plane. Or, if you’re reading this later, I may already be soaring across the sea. I’m still not sure what the Lord has for me on the other side of that flight, but I’m so, so excited and ready to follow His lead.
Once there, we have a lot to pack into nine days. We will be working with an after-school ministry. There will also be time set aside to learn about the history and culture of the area. Some of those places inspired CS Lewis to write Narnia. Perhaps I’ll get new book ideas myself! Or songs, because of course my guitar is coming, too!
I may be taking a plane instead of stepping through a wardrobe, but I have no doubt it will be a grand adventure! If you think of me, dear friend, please pray that I won’t miss a single opportunity on journeys and side quests for the Lord.
I’m always writing new music! Have you heard my latest unreleased song, “Shatters His” yet? It’s one of those songs that has been written over the course of my whole life, really, as a response to witnessing hard, tragic things and not knowing quite what to say. This is what I have to say. Here’s the link from YouTube to give it a listen!
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