It's Not Rio de Janeiro But...
Urcos is a truly beautiful place and after a hard day of classic step team construction work, pickaxing and shoveling dirt, I decided that my unhealthy week with the Americans would come to an end with a run around the town.
As I looked out of my window savouring the last puff of my inhaler, I caught sight of Jesus. No, unfortunatly I didn't have a deep spiritual encounter with the son of God, I simply saw the statue of him on the hill above Urcos. The statue is just like the 'Christ Redeemer' in Rio, only its about 20 times smaller and a lot less
impressive. Nevertheless as the others wandered into Urcos to explore, I set myself the challenge of running to Jesus and back (what a bizzare sentence that is!!).
Having run up through the town I reached the base of the hill and realised that I may had bitten off more than I could chew in trying to run up the whole way. Still, I did from home to the top in 15 minutes, which I'm pretty damn proud of (this hill was very, very steep).
Anyway, why am I telling you about my attempts to re-gain my fitness? Well, to be honest, the running/walking part provides the background to what I really want to say. You see, God reminded me of a really important truth up on that hill two days ago:
God is so much more that a statue. That may sound really obvious and basic and I can already sense you saying 'well this post isn't worth reading!'. So before you click off onto Facebook, let me fully explain...
As I forced myself to run the final bit of the hill to the statue I really felt a sense of heading towards sanctuary in Christ's wide open arms. Sounds silly I know, and I must admit I chuckled to myself as the line 'and oh, I'm running to your arms' from the song Forever Reign came into my head. But oddly, it did feel as though I was doing just that. I reached his feet, looked up at this big white figure and then turned around to see what it looked out over.
The whole town of Urcos lay before me, with the mountains spralled out behond that. I could still hear the noises from the town yet I felt very much detached as I looked out over it. Then my brain started whirring and it started to dawn on me, the sheer size and power of God. From up on that hill the statue looked over Urcos as if it were a spec, that would be gone if it were to be breathed on. But our God is soooo much more than some guy looking over one small town in Peru. He created the whole earth and looks over every single tiny inche of it!
Isaiah 40: 12-17 says:
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord,
or instruct the Lord as his counselor?
14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,
or showed him the path of understanding?
As I looked out of my window savouring the last puff of my inhaler, I caught sight of Jesus. No, unfortunatly I didn't have a deep spiritual encounter with the son of God, I simply saw the statue of him on the hill above Urcos. The statue is just like the 'Christ Redeemer' in Rio, only its about 20 times smaller and a lot less
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| The Urcos Jesus |
Having run up through the town I reached the base of the hill and realised that I may had bitten off more than I could chew in trying to run up the whole way. Still, I did from home to the top in 15 minutes, which I'm pretty damn proud of (this hill was very, very steep).
Anyway, why am I telling you about my attempts to re-gain my fitness? Well, to be honest, the running/walking part provides the background to what I really want to say. You see, God reminded me of a really important truth up on that hill two days ago:
God is so much more that a statue. That may sound really obvious and basic and I can already sense you saying 'well this post isn't worth reading!'. So before you click off onto Facebook, let me fully explain...
Some Vaguely Theological Terms...
As I forced myself to run the final bit of the hill to the statue I really felt a sense of heading towards sanctuary in Christ's wide open arms. Sounds silly I know, and I must admit I chuckled to myself as the line 'and oh, I'm running to your arms' from the song Forever Reign came into my head. But oddly, it did feel as though I was doing just that. I reached his feet, looked up at this big white figure and then turned around to see what it looked out over.
The whole town of Urcos lay before me, with the mountains spralled out behond that. I could still hear the noises from the town yet I felt very much detached as I looked out over it. Then my brain started whirring and it started to dawn on me, the sheer size and power of God. From up on that hill the statue looked over Urcos as if it were a spec, that would be gone if it were to be breathed on. But our God is soooo much more than some guy looking over one small town in Peru. He created the whole earth and looks over every single tiny inche of it!
Isaiah 40: 12-17 says:
12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?
13 Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord,
or instruct the Lord as his counselor?
14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,
or showed him the path of understanding?
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales;
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.
16 Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations are as nothing;
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.
they are regarded as dust on the scales;
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.
16 Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations are as nothing;
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.
He is a holy, powerful, massive, infinite, transendent (that was my theological word, not very impressive I know..) God, for whom nothing is impossible, Luke 1:37
But our God is also an iminant (theological term number 2, and its not even that theological, I'm really clutching at straws..) God.
As I looked down and saw our clinic where we're staying I thought just how present God was there. That He was in the clinic, in the town square, in that farm over there, over at the football pitches, the lake.. And not just hovering like some wierd ghost, but actively seeking to be involved, working in every situation and caring, loving, encouraging and moving in every single peron's life. Knowing and caring, more than we can every imagine, about every tiny detail of the lives of those people walking through the streets of Urcos. But not just Urcos, the whole world! The psalmist say, 'if I go up to the heavens, you're there, if I make my bed in te depths, you're there'.
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| I've already posted this photo but I didn't realise that this is the exact view over Urcos from the Jesus statue. |
Thats why Jesus came to this broken, hurting world. God's overwhelming love for his people, his little people that he could blow on and make them wither, was simply so great that he just couldn't stand for our sin to get in the way of a relationship with him. And still, I thought as I sat there, begining to get cold as the sun set, if I were the only person on earth, ever.. Jesus still would have died for me. That's how deep, and perfect and constant and unfathomable and wide and mindblowing the Father's love is!
So what did God remind me of, and what is the jist of this covoluted post? Well, I think John sums it up far better than I do:
1 John 4: 9-10, 16
9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins... 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
So there's my thought for the day, sat in Cusco. I'm here again because Allie is ill once more, so we've been here since midday yesterday visiting various clinics and doctors trying to work out exactly whats wrong, (no one's that certain, even an American doctor). She's resting right now in our supervisor's house so I went for a walk and stumbled into an internet cafe to give you this rather long thought of mine from Tuesday. Hopefully you got something from it, if not, very sorry for the 5 or 10 minutes of your life you'll never get back. Please pray for Allie, and Suzzie as her Grandad has just gone into hospital and alothugh I'm not with her she's apparently quite upset, (hopefully thats not too personal..) and general prayer for the whole team, because prayer works! We plan to walk up to Jesus as a team so when we do I will fill out this post with those pictures.
Much love and God bless.
JJ
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