What a couple of weeks we’ve had. For those of you following our journey, I’m not quite sure where to start. If you follow us on Facebook or Instagram, the first thing that will probably grab your attention is the beautiful landscape captured in our photos. And let me tell you this; pictures do not do this remarkable place justice. Not even close.
We have travelled quite a bit in the last couple of weeks. When he wrote “Oh, the places you’ll see,” Dr. Seuss had to be talking about Callander and the Trossachs Mountains. Or maybe even Stirling Castle and the Wallace Monument. Perhaps he had the tiny fishing village of Portknockie on his mind or it’s rival to the south Stonehaven and Dunnottar Castle. Pitlochery and its Queen’s view seemed like a fairy tale. Whatever the case, it’s hard to imagine traveling anywhere else in the world without somehow comparing it to Scotland. We are about a quarter of the way through our journey here, and it’s hard to imagine how it could get any more beautiful.
But in the midst of this beauty there has been something even better. People. Yep, you read that right…people. All kinds of people. Even Bec, the introvert agrees. The relationships have been the best part of the trip. And we weren’t really expecting that.
Some we already knew, some we didn’t. Some are American, some are Scottish. Some that immediately offered their friendship, and some that kept us at arm’s length until they were comfortable with these American interlopers. In the middle of it all, we know the Lord has been making these connections for us. There’s no way we could have done it. We’re just not that good. Trust me.
New friends and ministry partners, Rodney and Kristen Huffty, opened their home to us like it was ours. Their small group at Cornerstone Church did the same, for three straight Tuesdays. And their pastor, Calum Jack, and his wife Moira Anne, invited us over for the Queen’s Jubilee Celebration. Kenneth and Angela McKenzie offered their car when ours had yet to materialize. Then they offered to let us stay in their guest home! We even had our West Ridge friends Bryan and Kate Galat and their wonderful children hang with us for a week in Stirling. How awesome is that!
In the busyness of our lives, we can miss things. Things that matter. Things that can make a difference. Coming to Scotland has been no different. We have missed things. In the busyness of trying to buy a car, figuring out exactly where we will land, buying a property, preparing to host a pastor vision tour, and establishing ministry partners, we have sometimes missed the mark…missed the whole reason we are here. To connect with people.
Our prayer is that in the midst of all of the craziness of this new life, we don’t miss the mark anymore. That we don’t do it alone. As unintentional as it has been, we’ve made that mistake. I think at times we all do. Helen Keller was blind and deaf. But she recognized a truth that most of us would agree with. “If you want to go quickly, go alone. Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much.”