Journey to health in 100 days
I’m on a 100-day challenge. 100 days, 100% raw. I think I’m now on about day 25. I’ve walked this road before and still can’t understand what made me turn back. The great thing is that when we lose ourselves we don’t have to spend the rest of our lives beating up on ourselves. What we do is forgive ourselves, turn around (in other words, repent), refocus and realign, and get moving in the right direction!
I’m having fun again trying out new recipes. I wonder if I’ll ever get weary of green smoothies for breakfast? Lots of people want to know what I eat. It’s very simple – fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds in their raw state! On rare occasions I use sprouted grains and cold pressed oils. I also use dried fruit but try to keep those to a minimum. (As I speak of ‘using’ food I’m reminded of ordering food at KFC in Georgetown Guyana and struggling to stifle the laugh that came when the cashier wanted to know if I was “using it” there or if I was taking it with me!)
Anyway, back to the story of this raw journey. I’ve discovered a value of sharing things on facebook – it works as an excellent source of support and accountability! In fact, I think that out of it I’m going to start a support group so look out for it if you’re interested!
Well, my mind is fixed. No matter what is happening around me, I will finish this challenge, and hopefully gain a few converts!
Moving … Again!
As I prepare to move house yet again, I pause to try to get in touch with what is really in my head space. In my present situation I was beginning to get restless; anxious; frustrated. I wanted to move on but had to wait on the right timing. Trying to move while a hundred million other things are going on in your life is not necessarily the best thing. One would imagine that it is necessary to at least slow down if not come to a halt in order to be able to make the move.
At just the right time, I believe, the word came that I should begin looking for a place. Normally, that is quite a frantic process, involving intense browsing of the newspapers and the internet, and contacting people throughout the days, trying to find the ideal place. This time, just one call brought me to the place I knew I wanted.
As I was going to look at it before coming to a decision, I found myself thinking of all the ‘cons’ of moving to St. Thomas. It is at least an hour’s drive away from my parents’ house and half an hour’s drive away from my church. If the bridge at Harbour View were to collapse, I would be cut off from the other side. Coming home from late functions in Kingston could be tricky. I’ll have to spend more money on gas.
Thinking about these things and wondering if I was doing the right thing, a thought came to mind. The real question is not whether this is the perfect place and the ideal situation. The real question is whether or not this is the right place for me to be in this season. It certainly was not convenient for Jesus to have come to earth. It was even more inconvenient for him to have gone to Jerusalem, knowing that they would kill him, but He went because He knew that was His destiny; that was His purpose.
This is actually how I also process things when an opportunity arises for me to go on any mission. My first question is not whether or not I can afford it. My first question is “Am I supposed to go?” If the answer is yes, then I trust God to provide the funds for me to go. If the answer is no, then it is no longer my concern! It has suddenly dawned on me that this is actually how I should approach every issue and every project!
Well, enough with the blogging for now. It’s time to get on with the packing!!
Why Do I Travel?
I always try to be honest with myself about who I am and what I do. Sometimes I am more successful than other times. Right now I’m having thoughts about why I travel.
- Is it because I’m fascinated by different cultures?
- Is it an attempt at running away?
- Am I searching for something or someone?
- Do I have a commitment phobia that prevents me from being able to commit to being in any one place for any great length of time?
- Is it that I lack the fear that would cause me to put down roots and refuse to ‘budge’?
- Is it fear of getting stuck in a mold?
- Is it a deep desire to surrender to the moving of Holy Spirit?
- Is it uncommon bravery?
- Is it an attempt at self-discovery?
- Is it because I’m being obedient to the Great Commission, to go into all the world and disciple the nations?
What I do know is that when I travel I seem to encounter more of God and the people He has created and scattered across this earth, “so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us.” (Acts 17:27)
What I also know is that regardless of my real, deep-seated reasons, God is working in all things for my good because I love Him and am called according to His purpose! (Romans 8:28)
What about you? Why do YOU travel??
Re-entry burn
Trying to find a way to slow down before landing back ‘home’ in Jamaica didn’t prevent me from experiencing what I call ‘re-entry burn’. It reminds me of the burn I felt as I slid down Dunn’s River Falls on my bum because I was afraid to keep climbing the slippery rocks to the top! I was so bruised when I got to the bottom, and those bruises lasted for days if not weeks.
So here I am. I’ve been back in sweet Jamdown for a little over a month, and have been going through a range of emotions and experiences, trying to readjust to life here. First of all, it’s a different life from the one I had before I left three months before. I’m occupying less space than I did before, not just physically, but in many other ways. For one thing, my Bible Study group is going through a slump, at best.
I have a few options. I can choose to pine over what I had before I left – my own space, all my books on shelves and bookcases instead of in boxes, kitchen laid out just the way I want it, with water distiller, VitaMix blender, food processor and juicer within easy reach, privacy and solitude just the way I like it. I can choose to pine over what I had when I was on the road – other people looking after my well-being, opportunities to minister in just the areas that I feel called and confident, frequent change of scenery which caters to my constant need for variety. OR I COULD choose to forget those things which are behind me and press forward, reaffirming all that God has already said to me, and believing Him with all my heart.
This is really not easy at all, and not fun either. At least when ‘not easy’ meets ‘fun’ it’s a little more palatable! The rubber has met the road, and sparks are flying. But here’s what I know for sure – I know that God is not surprised by any of this. He knows exactly what I’m going through. I know that He STILL has a plan that includes me. I know that if I just get still in His presence, in His time He will take me through to the next season.
It just dawned on me that Jesus knows exactly what I’m going through because He experienced something very similar. Imagine – It was as if He went to sleep in the wide open spaces of heaven, and woke up in a smelly barn, lying in the trough that the animals ate from!
We truly do not have a High Priest who is not touched with the feelings of our infirmities (Hebrews 4:15). So I will praise and worship Him while I wait out this ‘re-entry burn’, so that it doesn’t become a ‘re-entry burnout’!
World Citizen
It’s rehearsal week in Cape Town. We’re preparing for the third Lausanne Congress, and each day more and more people are arriving from all over the world. So it’s meal time and we take a break from rehearsing. On the worship team are people from Pakistan, Korea, Japan, Kenya, USA, Canada, South Africa, Mozambique, Latvia, Germany/Barbados, Canada/Tobago, and of course, Jamaica (sorry if I missed someone!)
So it’s meal time and we’re taking a break. In the registration area I meet a woman from Zimbabwe who says “Oh! I just met John (Roomes) and his wife from Jamaica! Not long after, I’m embracing my friends David and Jenny Wong from Singapore. Shortly before getting on the bus, I greet Las Newman and his wife, also from Jamaica.
The next day, a wonderful young man from the US – Chicago to be precise – is helping us carry our bags back to the hotel after a long day of rehearsals. He says to the Bajan – “Oh! You’re from the Caribbean! Do you know Joan? I just carried her bags for her.” I turn to him and say “You mean Joan Purcell from Grenada?” He says “That sounds like it.” I’m so excited. Joan should have been my roommate at this Congress, but being on the worship team meant giving that up. Joan is the president of the senate of the Grenadian Government, and has been a good friend since last year. We have been meeting and praying on Skype, and were really looking forward to being together here in Cape Town.
I’m finally beginning to believe my friend Wayne, that I know almost everybody in the world. It’s becoming a rare thing for me to meet someone who doesn’t know someone that I know!
What is God’s plan in this? One thing I know, is that it is definitely being confirmed that I have been called to the nations, and I certainly have more than enough connections to make it happen!
Traveling and the concept of ‘Home’
I remember when there was a period of my life when half my stuff was in Costa Rica, half was in Panama and half was in Jamaica. When people asked me where I lived, I found myself opening and closing my mouth a few times; no sound coming out. That was me coming to grips with the fact that I didn’t live anywhere! It was a very difficult time for me. I felt insecure, unstable, and – well – homeless!
It has taken a while for me to understand and embrace the reality of my situation. My situation is this – I am a citizen of heaven. As the old song says: “This world is not my home. I’m just a-passing through.” My real home is not in Kingston, Jamaica … or whatever other city or country I happen to be domicile in at any given point in time. My real home is God. “In Him I live, and move, and have my being. “ (Acts 17:28) Since He is omnipresent, then I’m always home!
Well, on this three-month stint away from Jamaica, passing through three countries that I do not call home, I’ll have many opportunities to test whether or not I’ve truly embraced this reality!
Baggage
It was after I had finally finished packing and was just about to put the luggage in the car that I noticed that the pulley handle was missing from the suitcase. Drat! The thing I hate most about traveling is the luggage. I look forward to a day when I’ll be able to walk through the airport with just an over-sized handbag over my shoulder and no checked luggage!
No such luck this time around. I had to pack for a three-month voyage covering at least six destinations in two countries. Warm climates and cold climates. It didn’t help that one of the destinations involves a week-long international congress at which I’ll be helping to lead worship, and therefore need to dress appropriately. I was determined, though, to keep my luggage to a minimum.
The key question was, what among the contents of my suitcases was legitimate luggage, and what was ‘baggage’? I mean, did I really need the ten pounds added by all those hair products that I insisted on traveling with because I didn’t trust that when I needed them I’d be able to find the right products in a store around the corner?? I distinctly remember deciding never to EVER have to pay for overweight luggage again after having to do so on my way to a three-week tour of the Caribbean from Costa Rica.
One decision I took that helped me to keep things to a minimum, was not to travel with a bag of books as I often do. This time, I decided to get to know my hosts by reading books from their bookshelf. Books are never in short supply! The ones in my own house will be there when I return, so I’ll make the most of the opportunities I encounter as I travel to read what is available wherever I am. Opportunities to expand my mind and learn new things I wouldn’t ordinarily have chosen to learn.
Another decision I took is to not go shopping! That wasn’t too difficult a decision to make for too reasons – lack of funds, and lack of space. No, I will not be taking home souvenirs from South Africa! … At least, I don’t think I will! Ok, maybe just ONE thing to remind myself I was there. 
One thing I’ve been learning though, is that the currency of the kingdom is souls. As I travel, I must bear that in mind, so that the main thing remains the main thing.
On this trip, I’m hoping to release some of the baggage I’ve been carrying, and to go home lighter. The baggage of limitations on what I can accomplish. The baggage of trying to live up to the expectations of others. The baggage of trying to do everything all at once, and not accomplishing anything. The baggage of underestimating myself, not realizing that who I’m really underestimating is my God! On this trip, I will prove that my God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond all that I could ask or imagine, according to HIS power that is at work within me! (Ephesians 3:20) … and with a minimum amount of luggage to boot!
Free to Travel
Aagos maanin! Happy emancipation day to all Jamaicans. Isn’t it great that we are free to travel pretty much anywhere in the world? And we – at least most of us – LOVE to travel. (Except for my father who doesn’t own a passport … yet! “If God had intended for people to fly,” says he, “He would have made us with wings!” We will agree that he’s the exception that proves the rule, as they say.)
It’s time to put our travel, as we should all of our lives, in the context of the bigger picture. The bigger picture is that although we are free, those of us who have willingly given our lives over to God no longer belong to ourselves. Our motives are therefore no longer self-serving, but God-serving.
So why should we travel? Because God, who owns us, has empowered us and sent us into ALL the world… not just farrin! (For those who are not among the initiated, ‘farrin’ refers primarily to the United States of America, in pretty much the same way that ‘credit’ within the context of purchasing ‘credit’ for your pre-paid cellular phone refers to $100 worth of credit, no questions asked.)
So recently, when there was deep concern over whether or not the US was going to arbitrarily begin revoking US tourist visas, I was not too disturbed, because there are over 200 other countries in the world! We are not as limited as we think we are, and the One who bought us to set us free told us to go into ALL the world, and tell ALL people and nations that He came to set them free, so LET’S GO!
Jo to the World!
I’ve been told that this is one of the best ways to communicate with some people. I’m acting on good advice from good people by starting this blog!
Why do I call it “Jo to the World”? Well, for one thing, I’m thinking to share my global perspectives from my local context – Jamaica. Secondly, I’m sharing from the standpoint of being mandated to “tell the whole world to sing a new song unto the Lord!”. I’ve already been doing this in countries like Burkina Faso, Benin, Panama, Peru, Antigua, Cayman Islands and Jamaica.
Hope you’ll enjoy journeying with me!
