The following is the essay that I was required to write during orientation this week, concerning what God taught me during the Journey to the Heart.
"Leading up to this Journey, I was excited about going back up to the Northwoods, I was excited of the opportunities I was going to have to be out in His creation, but most of all I was looking forward to the time I was going to be able to spend alone with Him, praying and hearing Him.
The time that I spent with my fellow students, in my Journey group, was amazing but it was nothing to equal what God had in mind for me. I was able to fellowship with God in a way that I have never done before. God was near me last week, speaking to me for as long as I was willing to listen.
The first day I concentrated on getting my heart right with God. Over the past few weeks God had done great things in my life, but there were still a couple areas to clear up. I spent as much time alone with God as I could, in prayer and just listening. I asked Him to give me the answers to a couple of things, and was just waiting for Him to answer me.
Thursday afternoon my group split up for alone prayer time. I started walking with my Bible and binder, but ended up setting them aside as they were just distracting me from talking with my Creator, Father, and Friend. I had a certain place that I wanted to go, the hills that are pretty much the highest point around the Lodge, but I asked something of God. I knew that it was a very visible place, but I didn't want anyone to see me. I asked Him to either make me invisible, not noticed, or to make people move. I didn't know it at the time, but I had passed one of my brothers on my way up and he told me later that shortly after I passed he got up and left. A coincidence? I believe it was a direct answer to my prayer.
Up on that hill, I gave everything that I had been keeping from God to Him completely and unreservedly. I had given almost everything to Him, but He showed me that there were certain areas that I was still holding back. One area was music. I had purposed several months ago to only listen to music that honored Him, but at Northwoods God showed me that I was choosing what was glorifying, rather than following His word.
God did some amazing things in my life up at Journey, but the coolest thing that He told me, that I learned from Him, was the day after we got back, Sunday night. I had asked God to give me a mission purpose for the next year, as He gave me last year about this time. He didn't answer me while on the Journey. But as I was praying along with several other guys on Sunday night, God spoke to me and told me what purpose He has for me for the next year! It was awesome to know that God is still speaking to me, as I am with Him.
The greatest thing I learned or was taught on this Journey is the power of prayer and how important it is to everything that I do, and how important prayer is in discerning the Lord's will for my life. During Journey I was constantly praying, and have continued since we got back. God keeps on giving me instruction for what to do, when I need to know. I am awed that He is answering me, and I intend to keep on talking to my Father for a long time to come. My Heavenly Father is all-knowing, and with His wisdom available for me I will never fail so long as I stay close to Him in prayer."
