RECKLESS ABANDON

 

Do you follow the Lord with reckless abandon?

 

First, what does reckless abandon mean?

Reckless, meaning “having or showing no regard for danger or consequences” and abandon, meaning “showing lack of restraint” leads me to view

Following the Lord with reckless abandon as….

…Surrendering ourselves and our life to following God, with all our being, with no regard for anything else in this world.

…Letting Him lead and guide us even when things do not make logical sense.

…Clinging to Him and trusting Him that He is the author of our life who leads and guides our every step.

 

 

Let me share a recent vacation experience where the phrase “reckless abandon” kept me going.

Going against my comfort zone and I admit not being happy about it at first, I was forced to drive a 2 passenger UTV in Aruba as part of a family excursion we had booked.

I say “forced” because we were planning to have my daughter drive the one UTV but were told later that the required age to drive the UTV was suppose to be 23 years old which she is shy of. So, that meant I was the only other one old enough to drive.

After our one minute “crash” course in how to drive the UTV, which only has one gear which is high gear, I asked Rocky, our guide, for reassurance that anyone could really do this adventure. He stated if you can drive, you can do it, but that you do have to be forceful and bold. So, yes, I got doubting myself and my ability especially with the waiver form that you have to sign that mentions you could easily topple over so use caution when operating the UTV.

 

 

 

To start, these UTV’s are open air vehicles with no mirrors, windshield, wipers, or directionals; therefore, if you are turning left the driver uses the proper hand signal and if you are going right, the passenger does so. There is no way to move the seat forward so, if like me, you have short legs, you have to adjust yourself instead!  Yes, my butt was seated on the very edge of the seat in order to be able to put the pedals to the metal!  I opted to wear a helmet just in case I toppled our UTV, but didn’t have enough time to adjust the strap tight enough before having to start our eight UTV convoy.

Little did we know, until we were ready to board the van to get to the UTV’s, that this excursion was nicknamed “shake & roll” and that we would get red dust all over ourselves!  We received bandannas to help protect our nose and mouth from the sand, dust, and dirt that would accompany our ride.

 

Only my son could pull off a pink bandanna with a red Caribbean shirt and red sunglasses! 🙂

 

Due to my apprehension about driving the UTV, I got to ride right behind Rocky so he could monitor me if need be.

We did not really think about the fact that we would be driving on the actual paved roads of Aruba along with the regular traffic to get to the off-roading part! I was thankful that at least Arubans drive on the same side of the road that we do back in the USA! (unlike some islands we visited.)

Thankfully, I don’t think anyone was videoing us as we started on the three hour adventure as I’m sure it was pretty hilarious watching my UTV putt-putt-puttering along until I got the hang of just pushing the pedal down as far as it would go! It reminded me of driving antique cars on a track at an amusement park if anyone can relate to that.

We were probably on the paved roads for probably 15 minutes. In case you were not aware, Aruba has many round-abouts! Thankfully, I just kept following Rocky noticing that often he would signal a car on a round about to let us all go before they proceeded. Aruba also seemed to be a pretty windy place. In fact, my daughter started out holding her bandanna before she was going to put it on, but while we were still on the paved roads, it flew out of her hand, forever lost! We did get a laugh out of it though.  While still on the paved roads, I could be seen driving with one hand on the steering wheel, while trying to hold my helmet and bandanna on! (Thankfully we don’t have any pictures of that!) What a sight it must have been!

 

 

 

Suddenly, we pulled off on an unpaved road, almost sandy area where the real adventure started. It truly was amazing and breathtaking to suddenly see cacti and desert, rocky like areas all around the north part of Aruba.  Shortly after our first stop we got to flip the 4 wheel drive knob on, and off we went.

 

I just kept thinking okay…you just have to keep following Rocky.  If he goes fast, you go fast, if he slows down, you slow down. Eventually, the thought of “reckless abandon” kept running through my head. I had to keep going forward with reckless abandon; there was no other choice. Whatever was going to happen would happen.

By the time of our next stop, Rocky told me I was doing great, and I think he was even a little surprised I was keeping up with him through the rough, rocky, sandy terrain. (Sorry…these pictures don’t capture the rougher terrain we drove through…the camera wouldn’t have survived!) He even gave me a thumbs up.

 

 

 

The view was so incredible.  We saw mountains, a fort, a lighthouse, a few parts of the ocean where the locals go because of the intense waves, and a church. God has made such a beautiful earth for us to enjoy where we can see His glory!

 

 

 

 

What are some lessons I learned from this UTV experience that also relates to our walk with the Lord?

We need to…

…. step out of our comfort zone

…. be strong and courageous

….only look forward–not backward or to the side (no mirrors!)

….follow only the Lord–don’t get sidetracked

….enjoy the beauty that is all around

….give the Lord all we have

….pursue the Lord with reckless abandon!

 

 

What does pursuing the Lord with reckless abandon look like in our daily life?

 

Focusing our thoughts and actions on God, not ourselves

Keeping our eyes on Him following His ways each moment not the ways of this world

Letting God define us and not our present circumstances

Embracing the eternal not dwelling on our dreams for this earth that are only temporary

Loving all passionately like God loves us just because He made us all—not because of how people treat us or things we do

 

Is there maybe one of these areas listed above that the Lord is calling you to work on a little more this week?  Be encouraged to step out in faith, and take baby steps in accomplishing that this week.

If you were willing to share what that is in the comment section below, it would be a blessing to hear.  Many thanks!

Let me encourage you this week to…..

….Follow the Lord with reckless abandon!!!

 

“Come,” He said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”  –Matthew 14:29-30  (NIV)