Some chalk it up to coincidence, others, chance, but I think such words are a bit weak and ridiculous in times as these. With such fine orchestration, it looks and feels more like a touch by the hand of God. In Sydney, I had such moments.
Leaving the Gold Coast to arrive in Sydney was bittersweet. I was excited to meet this well-known city with its world famous landmarks but sad as well. This was the last bit of Australia I’d get to explore on this journey. It’s just as well though. My travel companion and I are feeling the affects of travel on our tired bodies. That feeling was masked with excitement when we stepped out of the train station and set eyes on our hotel in the heart of the city.
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| Anzac War Memorial - view from hotel balcony |
With a balcony overlooking the luscious green trees of Hyde Park, we had a wonderful view from our room of not only the park, but the hustle of the city, the Anzac War Memorial, the orangey spires of Saint Mary’s Cathedral, and bats, hundreds of bats that fly at twilight from their home in the Royal Botanical Gardens.
Being Sunday, my travel companion and I eagerly got dressed up for the first time on this trip and headed to Central Station to catch a shuttle bus to Hillsong Church, a venue we both most eagerly wanted to experience for a couple of reasons. For me, every time I travel, I like to experience God in that city or country. Often times, people celebrate God in different ways but the heart message is the same. Even though we may be of different cultures or countries, it is the one thing we have in common among our many differences and what makes strangers instant family.
Hillsong Church has produced powerful worship music and leaders through their Biblical schools but I had yet to hear their teaching. Since this was the first Sunday in a few weeks I’ve been able to go to church, my soul was hungry to experience God in a new way. God definitely pays for what He orders!
While the worship music was similar to what I experienced at my home church, it was the teaching that spoke to my heart. The female pastor spoke on the power of sharing your personal story. Sometimes, we may feel we don’t have much of a story to share. We may have grown up in a good family and were basically good, clean cut kids with no drastic transformations to juice up our stories like getting off of drugs, being homeless, or murdering someone. I remember thinking this as a teenager and again recently. It’s like we’re plain ‘ol vanilla ice cream, but there’s more to vanilla than just the cream.
When we share our stories, that vulnerability on our part can leave a powerful imprint on those who are listening with open hearts, resonating with parts of their own stories. To me, this is what Christianity is all about – hearing the story of Jesus and allowing it to resonate inside our hearts. It’s what allows complete strangers to become family.
It was poignant the pastor spoke about sharing our stories because on this trip I’ve been fascinated with people’s stories. However with the amount of brief encounters, they usually revolve around travel. Where are you from? What brought you to Australia? What will you be seeing? How long is your vacation? When people hear my American accent, I am asked the same questions. It’s amazing how introducing yourself, saying “hi”, and sincerely listening to people’s stories makes an imprint on one’s life, especially mine. It’s from those stories that deeper conversations spring forth.
Since many of us don’t think our lives are worth talking about, we don’t really know what to say when asked. At the end of the service, we were given time to meet in groups of 2-3 and take a couple of minutes to share parts of our story with each other, whatever felt comfortable. What depth came out of such a short time from beneath our vanilla exteriors! We all shared different struggles and triumphs as well as sadness and joys, which shaped our lives thus far. For me, the 6th grade came to mind, a pivotal time on which my life hung on.
I grew up in a loving family who went to church. While I came to believe in Jesus at a young age, it wasn’t until 6th grade when I began to really question who God was, why we shouldn’t do things like swear, and if God was real. I remember having a long talk with God, asking, demanding with all my heart He prove Himself to me because if He didn’t, I didn’t know what I would believe. I had heard that God talks to you and that He wants to have a relationship with you but I had been listening and heard nothing. What had been the foundation of my life those few years was on shaky ground.
It was then in the still silence of my backyard I heard a voice in my heart referring to a Bible scripture. When I looked upon those words, it was as if they were written to me, speaking directly to my heart. I knew then that God cared, He listened, and that He was real.
I would need that strong foundation of faith, for the years ahead beginning in Jr. High were dotted with life-threatening harassment, bullying, and persecution because of my Christian beliefs. I realized then that such challenges had the opposite effect than my attackers hoped for, allowing me to see God’s hand in my life. It refined my faith and further developed me as a leader.
However, it has not been easy and often lonely living a life that honors God. While I was referring to a community of friends and society in general, a lady in my group interpreted my loneliness as my singleness. Her words awakened a deep desire of my heart that I had buried. I do want to be married but to the right man, a man after God’s own heart, a man who has a likeness in purpose as myself. However, I’ve had a hard time balancing faith in things unseen and contentment in my reality as a single woman. It often hurts to hope and with the acknowledgement of this desire of mine, I sobbed, something I didn’t want nor plan to do as evident by my lack of Kleenex. I know God has good plans for me whether it is being single or married. I know in either case, I can only control my actions and the betterment of myself as a person, which continues to be my focus.
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| Playing in the fountains at Darling Harbor |
With tear-soggy sleeves and a new awareness, we headed back to the hotel. Making the most of this sunny day, I bought a mymulti transportation pass which allows travel on almost all forms of transportation for the week, and headed to Circular Quay (pronounced “key”) to catch a ferry which would not only take me past the Sydney Opera House and under the Sydney Harbor Bridge but to McMahon’s point (yes, there’s a point named after me!) and then to Darling Harbor. Life filled the harbor with music playing, people chattering, and children playing in the water fountains. It was a warm, beautifully sunny day, unknowingly the only one I would experience in Sydney.
A walk through the crazy, people-filled, shopping stalls of the Paddy Markets brought me to the Capitol Theater where I saw a poster for the musical “Mary Poppins.” I had wanted to see it so on a whim, I went in and bought a ticket for later this week.
Finding my way back to the hotel, we changed clothes for our dinner harbor cruise. Unfortunately by this time, it had begun to rain, which had all the cruise guests waiting under a tent waiting to board. Apparently, most of the guests were part of a company Christmas party. Thinking we were part of the party, one of the company attendees, May, introduced herself but when she heard our accents, realized her incorrect assumption. However in the grand scheme of things, our introduction was not a mistake.
A force of nature, May welcomed us fervently and even invited us to their party, introducing us to all her co-workers she crossed paths with. Knowing we were from the US, she went out of her way to introduce us to the President of the company and his wife, who are Americans from North Carolina. I couldn’t believe we were being introduced to the president of the company, who was as welcoming as could be.
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| Kristi getting ready for the dinner cruise |
Once boarded and seated on the yacht, our assigned seats separated us from the company party but we were closer to the buffet, which was amazing! We were not left wanting. However, I felt like I needed to talk to the president again and share the main reason for my trip to Australia – the celebration of earning my Masters. After all, how often do you meet the president of a company? He also had ended our first conversation with “God bless.” Could he be a fellow Christian? I prayed for another opportunity to chat with him.
On our way back to the harbor, we met up again with May and enjoyed the city lights, which were glowing amidst the raindrops as we sailed under the Sydney Harbor Bridge. She insisted we visit her in Bondi where she’d be our personal tour guide and gave us her contact information. We felt this was more than just superficial kindness and would seriously think about taking her up on the offer.
As we were waiting to disembark from the yacht, we crossed paths again with the president! Expressing my gratitude for our introduction and offering God’s blessing, his eyes lit up and jumped out of his chair. “I knew you were both sisters in Christ when I met you,” he exclaimed! He was not only a fellow Christian but was a pastor when in North Carolina. He works for this company to pay the bills, formerly being the Vice-president of the American company before he was promoted to President of the Australian subsidiary. When mentioning my Masters in Organizational Leadership, he began passionately discussing leadership of which I gladly partook as he escorted us off the yacht. We looked at each other; all realizing this meeting was not just a coincidence. He and his wife offered to treat us to dinner during our stay, gave me his cell number, email, and company web address.
As we parted ways, my travel companion and I walked towards the train station filled with food for the body and soul; I was in awe at the events of the day. I was definitely touched by God in a deep, intimate way that only my heart can adequately appreciate. While I do not know how this story will end, I am excited to find out.
Scavenger Hunt Item Completed:
11. Experience God in Australia.
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