Psalm 23:3

'He refreshes my soul,
He guides me along the right paths
For his names sake'

Refresh: to give new strength or energy to; reinvigorate. There is something really beautiful in the phrase refresh my soul. It is almost like a burst of energy that awakens and breathes back life into the very core of you. The fact that the author and creator of life can do that for me is pretty crazy, don't you think?

The past two years, have been somewhat of a dry season spiritually. Living in the countryside has been a bit of a challenge, not having a vibrant church full of students and youth, or mentors that I could meet with for coffee on a regular basis and without a community of encouragers it has been quite the desert.

But, where there is a desert, there is always an oasis. Despite lacking the above, the two years have made me press more into God, and pursue his heart no matter my surrounding. It has been a testing season, but God has led me to the oasis now and I am beginning to feel more awakened and alive spiritually than I have ever been.

This summer, as I have been preparing my heart for my upcoming trip to New Zealand for ten months, I felt it was really important to invest in friendships and go deeper and more vulnerable with people to build real community no matter where in the world we would be. God also happens to have exceptional timing. Having had one to ones with a few people the past couple of weeks, I have been completely overwhelmed, inspired and enriched by their dreams and pursuit of creating a Jesus culture. The fragrance of Jesus is all over them, and not only has he clearly refreshed their souls, but by just encountering these people, it has completely refreshed mine.

As New Zealand approaches, I feel like Gods timing could not have been more impeccable. Sometimes, he pulls us out of our comfort zone, and into the desert because His will is to be done, and when His will is done, we are led to the next step of our journey, back on track with even more zest for life.

J