I Have A Secret….

Currently, I’m in my happy place.  The house is quiet, the coffee is brewed, and thousands of wedding photos await me.  But, I have a secret.  Only a handful of people know, and that just won’t do.  Let me explain with a story…

At seventeen I had just graduated high school.  I was young, strong willed, and yearning for adventure.  As a graduation gift, my parents let me go to two places that summer if I could acquire the funds: Eleuthera, Bahamas and Panama.  The trip to Panama is a story for another time, it’s Eleuthera I want you to focus on.

My trip to Eleuthera was a missions trip.  Twenty or so of us boarded a plane and head to the tropical Island to love on the people of St. Gregory Town and share the gospel.  It sounded like fun.  Doing missions work has a way of making people feel good about themselves, and me being seventeen, I was all for whatever felt good.

We arrived via bus and were instantly greeted by the people of the village.  Children embraced us, mothers let us hold their babies-it was quite the welcome.  Many of us had been there before.  The core of the group had been developing relationships and coming every summer for over 8 years at that time.  It was as if they had come home.

The next ten days were spent developing and deepening relationships, loving, living, teaching, growing.  Days were long, but within each day, was sensation I couldn’t  describe.  My heart had somehow jumped from my chest and found itself in the laughter, the people, and the lives of the island.  It felt right.

 See, everything was intentional, every conversation, every activity, every adventure… it was all purposed.  I was a part of something bigger than myself, something that wasn’t about me and my selfish seventeen year old self.  Something that required me to pour myself out, and yet for the first time I felt filled to the brim.

Being a Pastors daughter my whole life- I knew about Jesus.  I knew every story, I knew that he was good.  I knew that he died for me, and therefore was worthy of me living for him.  But I didn’t know Jesus.  My knowledge of him was like my knowledge of the Queen of England.  I know a lot about her, but I don’t know her personally.  I don’t invite her over for tea, tell her about my day or share my heart with her.

It was there, on the Island, that I realized there was so much more to life than what I was living. Every day could BE like this.  Everyday could be purposed, intentional and bigger than me….

So, right there, in the white sand I told Jesus I wanted more.  It wasn’t anything flashy, and he didn’t come out of the sky on a white horse.  But he heard me because every day since then has been different.  More has found itself abundantly in my life….  the more that I craved was Jesus.  It has been hard, but nothing worthy of pursuit and dedication of life should ever be easy.

I went back to Eleuthera for two years in a row after that.  Each time I stepped off of the bus, I found the children myself in the embrace of familiar faces, it was like coming home.

It’s been two years since I saw those familiar faces.  God has been pulling at my heart strings to go back since January, but for one reason or another I have found a surplus of excuses as to why I shouldn’t go. A week ago I got the call that affirmed what God had already planted in my heart.  My relationship with God makes me chuckle sometimes- he always has a way of making himself so obviously clear at the seemingly most inconvenient times.  It is now twenty days before a team will leave Virginia and travel to Eleuthera, and I will be with them, I just need the funding.

The trip is a total of $1,200.

If you feel led to give, simply contact me at AnnaFilly@comcast[dot]net  (but replace the [dot] with “.” ;).

Every penny donated will go to spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ and building relationships with the people of Eleuthera, Bahamas.  If you would like more information on what we do specifically- PLEASE email me!  I would love to tell you more about what we do and how you can help.  I also have a list of names that I would love to have you pray for.  Contact me for that as well <3

Thankful for you!

xo

AnnaFilly