Saturday moning my alarm went off at 6:00 (and in the world of a college student that's unreasonably early). After a few minutes of getting myself ready and finishing some last minute packing, I grabbed my duffle bag, my pillow, locked my dorm room door, and went outside to meet the car-load of near-strangers with whom I'd spend the next eight days. It was the start to my Spring Break, and I hate to admit it, but I was kind of nervous.
In the fall, I signed up for Vanderbilt's Alternative Spring Break program. for those of you not familiar with ASB, it's a program designed to give students the opportunity to travel to one of thirty-seven sites in North America to provide some sort of community service with a group of 10-12 other Vanderbilt students. I was placed on the "Wagon Wheel" site in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. The focus of our service is on combating homelessness and poverty by partnering with the organization Volunteer Farms. The name kind of says it all: Volunteer Farms relies on the labor of volunteers to run the farm which grows food for food banks. It's ultimate purpose is to provide nutritious, healthy food to hungry people in the Shenandoah Valley.
In short, I signed myself up for a week of manual labor on a FARM for my spring break...and as I climbed into that silver van full of the strangers I'd be working on a farm with, I began to seriously doubt my sanity.
I couldn't help questioning: WHY didn't I choose to go to the beach like a normal college student on spring break...or WHY I didn't choose to go home to spend time with family and friends...and perhaps most importantly, I was asking myself WHY farming EVER sounded like a fun spring break activity.
But I swallowed my fearful, doubtful, questioning attitude and climbed into that Virginia-bound van with a smile. And I'm happy to report that from our little house in the middle of the Shenandoah Valley this Sunday night that coming on this trip has been the best decision I've made in quite a while.
Yesterday we made the long car ride from Nashville to Fort Valley, Virginia--complete with lots of group bonding and an epic Taylor Swift marathon of ever song she's ever recorded. So. Much. Fun. After a late-night game of Apples to Apples, I knew without a doubt that it was going to be a good week.
Today was our free day to enjoy being in Virginia together (don't worry...we'll start our farming tomorrow). We all went together to explore Luray Caverns, a gorgeous maze of underground rock formations filled with enormous stalactites and stalagmites.
From above ground, the caverns looked like they wouldn't be anything more than a hokey tourist trap (and believe me...there are plenty of those in the town of Luray, VA). We pulled into the parking lot and passed a giant maze of hedges, an automobile museum, and a gift shop. I did not have high expectations for the caverns. But upon venturing down the flight of stairs from the building's entryway into the heart of the caverns, I was astounded by the intricacies of the natural rock formations.
I couldn't help but feel that Luray Caverns is an impeccable example of the way the handiwork of mere people will never match the beauty of the creation of our great God. In an attempt to make the caverns a more appealing place to visit, someone had constructed a huge parking lot, and several really unappealing tourist-y buildings. However, the caverns, an uninterrupted example of God's work, were absolutely awe-inspiring. His greatness is unfathomable, and it's humbling to experience even a glimpse of God's glory in the work of His hands.
As we made our way through the caverns, I found myself smiling to think of what fun God must have had designing some of the more notable rock formations, like the stalactites that look like a water fall, the stalagmites that form the shape of "a big shaggy dog," or these little rocks that look just like a pair of fried eggs:
As funny as the fried-egg rocks are, the most impressive part of the Caverns is without a doubt the room dubbed "Giants' Hall" with it's massive naturally-vaulted ceilings, surrounded on all sides by some of the largest stalactites in the caverns.
As our tour group made our way into "Giants' Hall" the guide asked us to gather into the center of the room so that we could witness the playing of the "Great Stalac-pipe Organ" (the world's largest musical instrument, comprised of stalactites spread out over 3.5 acres within the caverns that each chime a different note when struck by a rubber mallet).
Within moments "Giants' Hall" was flooded with the resonating tones of Martin Luther's beloved hymn: A Mighty Fortress is Our God.
"A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.
Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing;
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabbath, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.
And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His truth to triumph through us:
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly powers, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth:
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever."
And in that moment, I was moved to worship. A more appropriate song could not have been played by the deep, reverberating tones of the stalactites. "A mighty fortress is our God...His kingdom is forever." Our great God is Lord of all Creation, and He leaves beautiful reminders in the work of his hand to draw us to rejoice in his glory. And right now I'm thankful for spring break. For a trip to Virginia. For a house full of new friends to spend a week with. For Luray Caverns. For stalactites. For Martin Luther's hymn. But most of all, I'm thankful that each aspect of this adventure is filled with opportunities to simply revel in the goodness and glory of my God.
