3/07/2008: Walking Through the Desert.

As the Alive Campaign, we knew we didn’t want this to be a religious organization by any means, because of how many people our there are struggling with their faith and have denounced God in all aspects. As I sit here thinking about how far we have come as an organization. From a tiny Facebook group to now a non-profit organization I can’t help but see an invisible hand working through all of this. I don’t think anyone is 100% sure of the existence of a God, or the universe, or something but I just can’t help but feel that something is working. I have been thinking all week, in between school, tests, and homework that the Alive Campaign, when put in perspective feels a lot like wandering through the desert like in the Bible with the story of Moses and the Jews. Many of you might not be familiar with the story so let me walk you through it. So there’s this guy, named Moses, and absolute horrible public speaker told by God to speak in front of the Pharaoh (nice one God) and asks him to let all of Egypt’s slave labor free. Moses looks at God and says “Why me?” but God convinces him to go and eventually after plagues and plagues God sets free the Jewish people from Egypt. The Jewish people are promised a Promise Land but they have to walk through the great desert first. It seems to me this is how the Alive Campaign came to be. We are a bunch of normal everyday college students doing our best to help a friend in need. Then we are cast into a gigantic desert as we come to challenge after challenge and every time we come a challenge in the way, whether it be money, non-profit status, website malfunctioning an invisible hand comes and helps us through. And like the Jewish people every time we overcome a new obstacle that’s bigger then the first we often wonder why we didn’t stay in Egypt in the first place where things were comfortable and we weren’t dependent on God, the universe, or something. And like the Jews coming out of Egypt God, the universe, or something is always there to provide. I often wonder how many times I have heard this story but always wondered why the Jews were such whiners but now I know, its hard going day by day being so dependent on God, the universe, or something, coming through for you that you don’t know how you can make it another day. But God, the universe, or something always has a way of providing. I feel that before I left Egypt I was comfortable with my life, I knew where my life was going, but now God, the universe, or something has screwed that all up. I can now say confidently that before Egypt I didn’t know what dependency was, it was only until I dropped all my belongings all my baggage and leapt forward do I truly know what life is about. I know there is a Promise Land our there, whether it looks like Alaska I do not know, but I am wandering through the desert putting all my hope in an idea, but I do know one thing, life is about being completely dependent on other people, and God, the universe, or something.