“For as long as I remember, and as far as I can see, there are pilgrims in a valley, lost and thirsty just like me. We seek shelter in each other when the rocks begin to slide. We can’t run from what is coming down the mountainside. When it all comes down, it all comes down. From the ground we were created, to the ground we will return. Every moment that we’ve borrowed, every token that we’ve earned, it was His in the beginning and it’s His to take away” -Brandon Heath

It was September 12, 2015, after walking in one of the most dangerous summer rain storms in France (so dangerous that the mountain I was walking on got shut down and crossed off after I had passed it) and I had finally arrived in a Refuge/Albergue in Orisson where I learned to appreciate dry clothes, hot soup, and a blanket, like never before. It was one of my first days on the Camino, I only walked about 15km that day, but because of how bad the storm was, it felt like I would never make it to a dry place to sleep.

After a few hours of reading a book inside, having hung my clothes to dry, and sneaking under a blanket before dinner, I stepped outside while it was still cloudy to go to the building next door for some dinner with all the pilgrims (above image) and we were all so grateful for our first meal as a pilgrim family together. The day was hard, but the family became real.

We all introduced ourselves after dinner. I knew this pilgrimage was internationally recognized, but I had no idea there would be so many people from almost all the continents of the world. There were people from Australia, Germany, Malaysia, Canada, Spain, New Zealand, United States, England, and endless more.

As we were all recovering from the ruthlessness of that day’s earlier storm, so many wonderful stories were shared around those dinner tables. Though we saw so much merciless weather and circumstances earlier that day, there were moments of beauty starting to form over the next few hours with our fellow pilgrims. Through engaging conversations, encouraging stories, astonishing dinner plates, and fascinating people, the couple hours at dinner completely changed our day. The energy in our hearts changed, as well as the skies outside.

Someone at dinner noticed that even though it was getting later, the skies were getting lighter. When we stepped outside, no one was expecting to see the beauty in the sky that we did. The past 12 hours had been filled with clouds, dark skies, and exceptionally thick fog.

Suddenly, the heavens opened up to a beautiful sunset where we found ourselves mountain-level above the day’s fog. I was stunned. Never again on the trip did I see a sunset as beautiful as the one from this day. I could not believe that if I had gone on this trip one day earlier or one day later, there was a huge chance I never would have seen the view that I saw that day.

I thought about it for a while…

I was simply thinking about how dark the whole sky had been for 2 days, and in a matter of a couple hours, the heavens opened up like this.

I thought about how I had to delay my trip by 1 day because I got incredibly ill 1 day before starting my trip. When I got sick, I was so upset that I had delayed my trip for a day, but at that moment I understood why. God blessed me with the view that day. This is proof of two great things.

1. That God knows us: He knows I am a visual and artistic girl who sees beauty in illustrations like these mountain views. He knows my gifts, He knows what I appreciate, and He knows what I need, when I need it.
2. God is on our side: He knew how tough my day was. He knew that I didn’t want the whole trip to be as dark, as rugged, demanding, exhausting, without at least some sort of blessing that says “See? Your difficult day was worth it.” And so God brings along a beautiful view such as this one to encourage me to step forward.

This might not touch everyone the same way it touched me, because yes, we are all different. But on a day like this when you struggle and suffer, the LITTLE THINGS are worth it. And this sunset was definitely my motivation.

That night as everyone was asleep, I could not fall asleep at all. I felt wide awake which was weird, because the day had demanded so much energy out of me. So I did what I feel I never do enough of: I prayed. A little while later, I realized the reason I hadn’t fallen asleep yet. God wanted me to hear a message. He wanted to explain to me that He did choose me to go on this trip, He chose to bless my day with the sunset of that evening even when I felt like giving up, even when I was so sick a few days before, and even when I lost faith in His strength in me.

The following paragraph is what Jesus whispered to me in the silence of that sleepless night, and I wrote it all down on my phone:

“God chose you to be in this room at this time.
He chose you to be friends with who you’re friends with.
He chose you, even after you sinned against Him, against your parents, even after you hurt your brother, sister, neighbour, partner, whatever it may be, He STILL chose you.
He hand made you, inside and out.
He made you BEAUTIFUL AND WONDERFUL.
He chose you to hear this for some reason.
Even after all the horrid things you think would’ve pushed Him away, He has STILL chosen you TODAY, to maybe be happiness for your friends, maybe help someone out, maybe to make your campus a better place, maybe to help save 1 person or 1000 people in your lifetime, maybe to simply plant 1 seed, maybe to go home and tell your parents something new about what you learn, maybe for the good of this world, and I don’t know exactly for which reason, but He chose YOU to be a part of His Kingdom.
It’s too late, you’ve been fearfully picked by the One man who made you possible, who made your community possible, who made me, Jesus Christ, alive, then die, then rise again. That same God, has chosen to love YOU.
He has chosen YOU to make a difference.
Doesn’t it feel good to be picked first?”

I don’t know if this speaks out to anyone, I just remember that night, thinking about how I was always picked last to be partners with someone, or last picked to be on a team, etc. That night, God redeemed those memories of never being picked, to being CHOSEN FIRST ON THE LORD’S TEAM. Whether you believe in God or don’t believe in God, you’re still chosen to live this life. You still have gifts and talents that will better the world. You will change the world, because that’s what you were chosen to do.

Feels good to be chosen, doesn’t it?