That bus ride tho!

As soon as I finish my latest blog update, it seems that it’s time to write another. If I could share with you everything that I am processing, experiencing, and living into everyday, I absolutely would! There are so many thoughts going on internally, I’m having difficulty keeping up myself ha! None less, I can feel the growing pains, I can sense the refreshing joy. God has a plan, & my heart is learning to be all in.

Currently, a group of 7 of us are on Malang, Indonesia; about 12 hours from Bali. The bus ride getting there was an adventure in itself. From squatty potties, to a eerie fairy ride in the dark, an interesting choice of music at 3AM in the morning, rainy roads, narrow roads, loud shouting, the strong smell of cigarettes, to swerving thousands of tuk tuks and motocyclist, to dodging big pot holes (or taking them head on) to the horn honking constantly, I think its safe to say my eyes were wide open most the time, amazed by the craziness of the ride, & shocked that we had not hit any cars or people passing by. I’ve had many interesting bus rides in my life, but this one surpassed them all. My team and I had the front row seats, so it gave us quite the view of close proximity to the vehicles ahead of us. Part of me loved the thrill & adrenaline rush, and another part of me feared for the peoples lives who were in the cars in front of us, and maybe those of us on the bus too, ha! The last part, I am only joking, this is just the culture of driving in Indonesia. It was like a roller coaster ride, a 12 hour roller coaster ride I will never forget. I love embracing the culture of Indonesia, wow!

In Malang, we have got connected with a family, several young adults, and a local international church and school. We plan to be in this area for the next two weeks and what we feel God has put on our heart so far, is to encourage the local international church families, as well as the locals we have met. We really hope to do our best to love these people well, & to help out wherever we can.

It has been really amazing how God has seemed to pave the path for us, because when we first got word of going to Malang, we did not yet know of any connections there. Now after day 3, it appears we are going to have a packed 2 weeks. I will let you know how that goes in the next blog post. Also, a new local friend hooked us up with staying at a guesthouse for a price WAY under what normally would be asked of stayers. We found out that the owner is a Christian and I can hardly wait to hear her story & get to know her more too! Oh, we also got to join in on a young adult bible study at the State university of Malang, it was such a cool experience!

Lately, in my personal quiet time, I have been learning about the prophet Elijah. I have intentionally tried to step into the shoes of what he must have felt like growing up & what it looked like for him to put his best efforts into living out God’s will. Like many, there must have been serious joy as well as serious struggle too! What did Elijah feel when he was asked to chat with queen Jezebel about his dream that would warn her about a drought of rain coming? What did Elijah think when a raven came and delivered him meat to sustain his appetite? Was it chicken, was it steak? Did Elijah sometimes not even want to do what responsibilities God asked of him? What was going through Elijah’s mind when God asked of him to speak life over a dead boys body & ask for his soul to be returned. These are some pretty wild experiences Elijah must of had! I can only imagine the excitement, doubts, & possible frustrations through these times too.

Elijah seemed to live in a time where people were choosing to say no to God, & yes to what they wanted to worship, & in that time some of it was in the form of idols, but why? Why was the struggle so real to say yes to God & give all the honor and love to God that he deserved? As I pondered on this question, it occurred to me. How often have I steered away from seeking out God in my life, because deep down I did not want to listen, nor want to trust what God would encourage me to do? I wanted what I wanted, & had great difficulty surrendering that. I find myself trying to fit Abba in a box that I want it to be, rather than what already is meant to be. It seems to me that just as there was great difficulty thousands of years ago, it is also here today. Just as there were numerous idols & God’s people chose to worship back then, there is that today too. This blows my mind. 

But if the God, creator of this universe is really as good as he says he is, why do we still run and resist his goodness? Why do I resist it at times when I even have the complete freedom to express my belief unlike many others in this world. Time after time in the Bible, and today’s happenings it shows that God truly does have a 100% track record of faithfulness, with the best intentions in mind. If God only has the best intentions, I think He wants all of our hearts to believe that too!

There you have it, the latest thoughts from me, Kailey. I really enjoy learning about the history of how this world has ticked and does tick today, I love to discover! Through these times I am understanding God’s heart more too.

How about you? What do you love to learn about and discover?

We will be here in Malang the next couple weeks, I am stoked for whats to come and will keep you posted on how it goes. This time is flying, I am loving it.

Prayer requests:
-Healing 🙂
-A new confidence as a daughter in Christ
-Discernment with the words that come out of my mouth
-Lodging for debrief
-Good health-one little fear I have is getting a worm or parasite from the food/water!