Saying "Yes" to God

"Who gets up one morning and decides to walk 800 kilometers? Who does that?" Randy said, incredulous. And yet that is what we did.

Had we not, who knows where either one of us would be today.

That's the beauty of saying "yes" to God. Even when it sounds crazy. Even when it doesn't make sense. Even when you know it is going to be hard. Even when no one else around you is doing it. You say "yes" and your life changes in such beautiful ways.

"Have you ever noticed that two-thirds of God’s name is G-O?" -Christine Caine

Today I am so excited for my friend Mark who is on his way to Madrid, where he too will make his way to St. Jean Pied de Port, France, to begin a very long walk. Mark showed up for the first time at Xenia Friends Church in Xenia, Ohio, while I was finishing my first Camino, and we met together several times over the next year, the last time being this past April, just after Randy and I had returned from our second walk. It was something he had wanted to do, and hearing my enthusiasm for it pushed him over the edge. (We've come full circle, haven't we, from the woman I heard speak about the Camino which pushed me over the edge, to now my story encouraging someone else to go! Read: Do the Thing.) This is just one of the many beautiful things about the Camino. It's not something you want to keep all to yourself. You want others to experience it for themselves.

I'm excited to see what Mark allows God to do in his life. How he will be challenged, what new things he will embrace, where the road will take him, the stories he will come home to share. And if you think of it, please remember Mark in your prayers for the next 34 days or so, as we wish him a "Buen Camino!"