Fairy Rings

The word that keeps coming to me as I pray through and seek vision from God over what the future holds is partnership.  As I was contemplating this, the picture that came to mind was a fairy ring.  Most of you probably aren’t very familiar with fairy rings unless you have studied mushrooms, but a fairy ring grows from a single mushroom spore (seed).  From that one spore, more mushrooms grow up around the outside forming a ring.

The fungus begins to grow underground where it is unseen to the eye, yet very much alive.  As is gains nutrients, it stretches out, and when conditions are right, the mushrooms come to the surface.  It is at this phase that the ring is visible.

As we embark on this journey, it actually is the fruit of years of growth, under the surface.  For many years I have been partnering with Adonai International Ministries to serve the least of these in Guatemala.  Others in the community came along side of me and we have been meeting and planning and praying over our time in Guatemala for months.  We have begun a child sponsorship program where others can partner to help out one child as well as a widow’s program to serve the widows and their children in the hardest hit region.  And we as a body of Christ continue to pray as well, for the lives of those we serve on a daily basis.  All of these things create partnership.

Just like the mushrooms in a fairy ring, our goal is to partner directly with Adonai in a mutualistic relationship where both parties benefit.  It begins as a small seed and spreads its roots deep so that others can benefit as well.  Those mushrooms (really the fruit of the fungus) are popping up all around.  They are represented by you.  Thank you for investing in the lives of those in Guatemala.

I’ve always enjoyed team games more than individual games.  I’ve enjoyed being part of the team, working with others, and being around others.  I thrive on competition and working together to beat a team of more talent.  To me it’s always more important how you play than if you win at any cost.  And so, team building has always been a staple in my life in building the best teams.  One of the most common things taught in any team building activity whether it is an athletic team, a group of teens working together, or a leadership group is the trust fall.

 In a trust fall, one partner stands with their arms expended from their sides so that they appear to be a cross.  Their partner stands behind them.  How a trust fall works is that the person standing in the position of a cross falls backwards like a tree would as If it were falling down.  Their partner is meant to catch them as they are half way to the ground.  It is not natural to throw oneself to the ground, it is not natural to believe that you will be caught as you fall to the ground, and so there is an aspect of trust that has to occur as person one decides that they are going to fall allowing their partner to catch them.

I have seen this done on the grass, off of porches, and into large groups of people.  I have even seen it done off the top of a zipline.   I have seen people easily be caught, and at times I have seen the catching partner miss, forget their role, or even step out of the way.  It’s meant to teach groups that have to work together that they are not doing it alone, that there is someone greater going to be there when they take that step and allow themselves to travel towards the ground.

This is how I have felt as I make the choice to embark on this journey.  Yet to me it is not a vision of hurling to the ground.  It is a vision of two cliffs, high above an ocean, and the trusting is more of a stepping out than a falling.  Like I am leaping out into this vast chasm and trusting that I will be carried to the other side, that I will not be swallowed up into the sea below.  To me this is a trust fall.  One that I have faced before as I embarked on Guatemala 13 years ago for the first time, and then 11 years ago again for a more permanent move.  One that later took me to Virginia, then Slippery Rock, and now to Guatemala again.  It is not about standing there wanting to fall;  it’s about falling and knowing the One that will catch you.  My faith has led me to this position.  I have been assured that this is what God has for me in this moment.  And so I stand, with my arms wide open, close my eyes, and let myself fall.  I know that this leap of faith will land in the arms of my Savior and He has something planned for my life at this point and time that even I cannot see.