the first Madagascan sunrise.
Last Saturday morning I watched my first sunrise from Madagascar. Well, technically we were a mile or so off the coast while we waited for our pilot boat to lead us into the port in Tamatave... but I'm counting it as the first on this exceptional island. Also, I didn't wake up in time for sunrise the next morning, our first morning actually docked here. :)
Initially, I was a bit disappointed because the early morning sky appeared gray and overcast... but once I reached the top deck of the ship and fixed my eyes on dawn's first golden sliver peaking over the horizon, I realized something.
The clouds actually enhance the sunrise. Casting shadows, appearing to refract the rays and highlighting the various, ever-changing hues of pink and orange and yellow.
Furthermore, the clouds allow us to experience the sunrise more fully. If there were no clouds, our eyes, as they are now, couldn't physically behold it all... We cannot stare straight at the sun rising in the clear sky without looking away or burning our retina.
Then my gaze drifted down from the sky to the sea--- the Indian Ocean I had been all too well-acquainted with the past 9 days of a rather rough sail. The water finally calm, the sunlight reflected in a line straight from the horizon to the very middle of our ship's stern. My ever-allegorical self saw this line of light and thought, Isn't that a physical representation of what we with Mercy Ships desire? Our mission is to "bring hope and healing to the forgotten poor", but at the core of that we want to bring Jesus. Jesus' hope. Jesus' healing.
Our patients have often spent much of their lives hiding behind scarves or closed doors. As we uncover disfigured faces and scarred arms in the hospital aboard the Africa Mercy, we are literally shining light on darkness. It is a vulnerable, exposing process for our patients; one that requires much trust and courage from them. But it is necessary for transformation to take place... for hope to be realized and for healing to occur. So it is with the heart.
My desire for Mercy Ships as an organization, for myself, and for everyone, is that a line of light would perpetually follow us, brilliantly illuminating the darkness, a trail of hope and healing. Wherever we go, that light will be the legacy left behind. And light begets more light.
So embrace the clouds in your life... the trials, the "gray". They may just be there to help you see the good, the light, more fully.
And consider what trail you are leaving behind. What is your legacy? That's not something to start thinking about in fifty years, but today...
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Initially, I was a bit disappointed because the early morning sky appeared gray and overcast... but once I reached the top deck of the ship and fixed my eyes on dawn's first golden sliver peaking over the horizon, I realized something.
The clouds actually enhance the sunrise. Casting shadows, appearing to refract the rays and highlighting the various, ever-changing hues of pink and orange and yellow.
Furthermore, the clouds allow us to experience the sunrise more fully. If there were no clouds, our eyes, as they are now, couldn't physically behold it all... We cannot stare straight at the sun rising in the clear sky without looking away or burning our retina.
Then my gaze drifted down from the sky to the sea--- the Indian Ocean I had been all too well-acquainted with the past 9 days of a rather rough sail. The water finally calm, the sunlight reflected in a line straight from the horizon to the very middle of our ship's stern. My ever-allegorical self saw this line of light and thought, Isn't that a physical representation of what we with Mercy Ships desire? Our mission is to "bring hope and healing to the forgotten poor", but at the core of that we want to bring Jesus. Jesus' hope. Jesus' healing.
For God, who said, "Let there be light in the darkness," has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. -2 Corinthians 4:6
Our patients have often spent much of their lives hiding behind scarves or closed doors. As we uncover disfigured faces and scarred arms in the hospital aboard the Africa Mercy, we are literally shining light on darkness. It is a vulnerable, exposing process for our patients; one that requires much trust and courage from them. But it is necessary for transformation to take place... for hope to be realized and for healing to occur. So it is with the heart.
My desire for Mercy Ships as an organization, for myself, and for everyone, is that a line of light would perpetually follow us, brilliantly illuminating the darkness, a trail of hope and healing. Wherever we go, that light will be the legacy left behind. And light begets more light.
So embrace the clouds in your life... the trials, the "gray". They may just be there to help you see the good, the light, more fully.
And consider what trail you are leaving behind. What is your legacy? That's not something to start thinking about in fifty years, but today...
Today I shall behave as if this is the day I'll be remembered. -Dr. Seuss
A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in. -Greek Proverb
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