Boat and Sea pt. 3

Girl

I’ve been lost at sea for a month now. I am hungry, I am thirsty, and I am tired. Even though it was my choice to get myself lost, I feel broken; like I’m not even me anymore. I know what I need to do, but I don’t do it because as stupid as it may sound, I consider myself justified for feeling the way I do. I try to lift my head up, but just trying does not get me anywhere. I deem myself so justified that I'm about to decide that I would rather stay lost out here in the sea, then leave and go back to living my dream.  

 

Papa

“I am right here, baby!” I have been standing in front of her the whole time, with my arms open, longing for her embrace, but she cannot see me. Her eyes are fixed on something else. Back when we were at the shore, I saw her get into the rickety, old wooden canoe, and I waited for her to call my name and invite me to go with her, but she never even looked back. My heart dropped. I follow her, protecting her and caring for her. She does not acknowledge that I am here, but I desire to be with my baby girl. She is so precious to me, but she seems to have forgotten all that we share. I watch as she rows the boat into deeper water. I am right here with her. So close to touch her, but she does not feel me, she does not want to. I can tell my baby is tired because her rowing comes to a stop and she lies down.

 

Girl

I look around in my boat and I see something tucked in one of the crevices. It is a folded up piece of paper. As I lay here, I feel weak, but I reach over to pick it up. Unfolding it slowly, I begin to read what it says. It is a love letter; half of it written from me to Papa and the other half is what he wrote to me. I began to read…

 

Papa

I have memorized the words from this letter. She wrote it to me a while ago and I have read it every day.

 

“Papa, I love you. From the deepest part of me, I desire you. You are my king, my creator, my love, my father. I will not go anywhere or do anything unless you are there with me. You are my one true love. I can’t take my eyes off of you because I am so in love. Your presence is so sweet. There is no other place I would rather be. It is refreshing. I fear nothing, I worry nothing, when I am with you. Your love is unconditional and your joy overwhelming. Thank you, Papa. You are strong like steel and soft like the wind. I am yours. I love you.”

Mm... how her words make me smile. I cannot forget that day, when she first truly fell in love with me.

 

Girl

After reading what I had wrote, it became so real to me. I continued to read what my Papa had written to me,

 

“Baby, “For you reach into my heart. With one flash of your eyes I am undone by your love.” Oh, how I desire to be with you. From before you were even a thought in your parent’s mind, I have loved you. I have set you apart and given you an amazing, great prophetic destiny. Your words are honey to me and I drink them in, the taste so sweet. You are my daughter and my love. You are strong and you amaze me. My heart races every time your eyes meet with mine. I trust you, baby. Thank you. I am so in love with you.” 

Tears rolled down my cheeks. My first love. I am reminded of him and the truth that he is.  I set the letter down on the bench beside me and read the promises that he had etched into the wood of the boat. They had always been there, but I had chosen not to read them. Now, I drink them in and am reminded of the promises my Papa has spoken to me. His promises are truth. I am so thankful for his unrelenting forgiveness. I call out his name and immediately, I see him running towards me, on top of the water. He steps inside the boat and kisses me softly; such a sweet kiss. No other thought can I think, except of him. He puts his hand on my heart and I am whole. He forgave me for the fit that I was throwing. I tell him that there is only one thing I want to do now. I want to go to our secret place.

 

Papa

It isn’t far to get from where we are to our secret place. She is tired, so I tell her that I will row the rest of the way. My heart is so happy right now. We are not using words, but our hearts are communicating. We look each other in the eye. Our tree comes into sight and as we arrive, I tie the boat to the thick trunk. I pick her up and lift her onto our branch. The blankets were still there and the candles lit. They are always lit because it is ready for us whenever we want. She gives me her hand and I sit by her side. “Baby, I love you and I missed you.” It was all I wanted to say. She tells me how much she loves me. I hear her words and cannot stop admiring her. Her beauty is beyond words. I grab her hand and stare into her blue eyes.

 

Girl

I haven’t stopped laughing since we got here. He makes me so happy and I feel so good when I am with him. Once I catch a break from laughing so hard, I am able to look up into his eyes, but when I see him, I begin to laugh even harder. I can’t bare look at him too long because I am laughing so hard that it hurts. He draws me in more and more. I have to hold onto him with all of my strength because if I don’t, I am going to fall. Oh man, I don’t know how I could have looked away from this. I will not do it again. This is too good. It is all good and I know there is still more. Whoa! He holds my face with his hands so that I am able to open my eyes and see him. There is so much I am trying to say, but I am unable to open my mouth. I know that it’s ok, though, because everything I am thinking, he is hearing. He tells me that he has something else that he wants to share with me. Every time he says this, butterflies begin to fly inside of me. It’s an excitement, a joy, a thankfulness, a wonder.

 

Papa

"Jamaica. Mayoruna tribe in Jamaica. I am going to send you to this tribe and the chief is going to fall in love with me there, though your heart. There are babies dying there and it breaks me to see this. But you, baby, you are going to bring the love and the truth that they need. Don’t worry because you aren’t going to go alone. I will be there with you the whole way. I will give you the words to say and provide for you. People are going to look up to you. Milk and honey will flow out of your fingers and feed thousands of the children there. Color is going to come back and joy is going to attack the tribe."

   I am beyond excited to go with her to Jamaica and see all of this happening. It is going to be great. I look at her and I see her face light up. I see her sitting on the edge of the branch. She wants to go and that is why I planned all of this for her. I trust her. The stars are dancing on the water and for a while, we just sit there watching them. She falls asleep on my shoulder and I scoop her up and set her gently into the boat. We ride the rippling waves as I row us back to shore. Without even waking her, I carry her up to her room and rest her in her bed. She is a princess. Even as she sleeps, her loveliness astounds me. “Good night, baby.”

Boat and Sea pt. 2

Girl

   I heard him calling again and we paddle through the moonlit sea, out to our place. I know it well by now. We have been here many times, sharing each others' hearts. The journey was so beautiful. It became the place where no matter what circumstances were going on around me, I could always go there to get my focus back on my Papa. 

   Here we were again. My week had been crazy; filled with ups and downs. I got five new girls in my house, then I found out that my grandma was in the hospital. I was told I was getting a beautiful baby boy, and later in the week, I received the call that my grandma had passed away. So needless to say, when I heard Papa calling my name, I sprinted down to be with him and didn't stop until I was in his arms. He is who I need. 

Papa

   It broke my heart to see her heart break. The week had been a roller coaster and I knew she was going to need a unique treasure to bring her back to the truth. She had given me her heart which was truly a blessing. I crave, I yearn for relationship with her.

   I had a special day planned out that would fill her love tank to overflowing. I love how well we know each other. Down to the smallest details, I know what makes her heart smile and her spirit come alive. 

   As I sit in our canoe, waiting for my beautiful baby, I look around and see that everything is perfect; exactly how I made it for her. The sky was hazy. Clouds are rolling across. The soil on the land was moist and as you breathed the cool air in, the smell of rain filled your being. "Sweatshirt weather," as she liked to call it. 

   I see her now. She is running towards me from the yellowing aspens. All the way from here, I can make out the crunch of the fallen leaves beneath her feet. Her loveliness still blows me away every time. As she nears me, I can't help but beam. I am beyond elated to see her again. She springs into my lap and I wrap my arms tightly around her. We just stay there for a moment, enjoying the closeness; breathing in the presence. "I love you, baby. You will forever be mine." I whispered these soft words to her. She looks up at me, tears filling up in her eyes and smiles. 

   "I love you, too, Papa. Let's go to our place." I squeeze her hand one more time, wrap her in a  blanket, and start to row. 

Girl

   Sitting on our branch, I look below as the gentle water dances. My Papa knows me even better than I know myself. He held me tight and pulled me in. I listened to the drum of his heart; the beat being to the rhythm of his love. It is my favorite song. I can't help but fall deeper and deeper in love. I am sinking in his love. 

   He leans closer to affirm to me again just how much he loves me. And how strong I am. I grab his hand. He's who makes me whole again. 

   "I have something planned for you, baby." He lifts me up into his back and jumps into the night sky. We're flying through the bright stars now. As we go by each one, our faces light up and I can feel them warmth radiating off of them. We are gliding up and down; left and right. I ask him where we're going and he is quiet. 

   We keep flying until I see something come into the distance. From way up here, it looks like a tiny island, but as we get closer, I notice it to be South America. We zoom over the land as I see all of the beautiful beaches, luscious rainforests, and people filled streets. I felt like the culture was being written into my DNA, becoming a part of my identity. Once I had seen everything, we went over to the next continent. Each place we were at, Papa would look back at me and smile. "This is all yours, baby. You're my daughter, And today is your birthday. What do you want? Name it: Nations as a present? Continents as a prize?"

   Hand in hand now, we flew back to our tree. The dark green leaves hung gracefully over each branch, creating a canopy like setting from the inside. He brought me to our branch where our blankets were waiting for us. I lean back against the cold tree trunk and Papa std across from me, looking into my eyes. 

Papa

   Sitting here looking at her filled my heart with joy. Our adventure had gone exactly how I had planned. I brought her to all of the nations that she was going to go and I gave them to her. She is my daughter, my beloved. Together we will get to bring transformation. 

   There was still more that I wanted to share with her. "I am going to take you to all of these nations and you won't even have to buy your plane tickets. You won't need to get on a plane at all. I am going to transport you to these nations. Together we will go from place to place, traveling in my presence. You're a prophetic voice to the nations. I trust you and I love you." 

Girl

   I was speechless. I couldn't even think about what to say but heart was beating so fast. I could literally hear it pounding outside of my chest. The hair on my neck was sticking up. All that he was saying to me seemed impossible. But I knew that it  wasn't. Nothing is impossible with my Papa. I was also just so excited. I love to travel and traveling with him would be the best. I wasn't quite sure how it would look being transported to these places, but I know that when you leave understanding behind, amazing things can happen. 

   He keeps me wrapped in the blanket and laid me down in the canoe. I lie there, listening to the splash of the water beating against the sides as Papa paddles us back home. I fell deep asleep, never feeling so good. He carried me back up to my room and sets me in bed. He doesn't leave, through, he never does. 

   "Until next time, baby. Good night."