This is my Aloha and Amen

Go, and I will show you.

This is my Aloha and Amen.

Amen. It’s done.

I remember being on the plane to Honolulu. I cried. I cried because I was leaving my Joy. My God-given maltipoo. She looked so sad that morning.

I told myself I wanted to be fully better, for myself, for Joy, and for the future ahead. I didn’t know what to expect. I feared I might just work, stay in the apartment, and never really go out.

Oh, but how God has met me here.

I knew I needed to slow down, to rest, to hear from Him, to listen to what God wanted to tell me. I had no expectations or plans. Of course, I had work. But even my plan of training for a half marathon went out the window. God wanted me to slow down on that too. “Walk,” He said.

And by walking, I began to see. I saw the people, the beauty, the life around me. Almost every day after work I’d walk through the park and end up watching the sunset, the breeze like medicine my soul had been needing. Besides Jesus, of course.

God met me here. I met people too, believers, seekers, wanderers, and those who may not know Him yet. They’ve helped me, whether they realize it or not. My favorite part of this whole trip has been those walks in the park.

I didn’t know it when I came here, but I love it: children playing, surfers in the waves, grandparents strolling, families barbecuing, runners, tourists in matching outfits, fishermen, couples newly engaged or taking wedding photos, moms pushing strollers, dog owners, locals on their regular walks, birthday celebrations, even what seemed like breakups. On Thursdays, there was even “Free Hot Dog and a Prayer” (I may or may not have gone a few times).

And I wonder, was this why God asked me to walk? To show me that life is fullest in the simplest things?

The sunsets became my haven. I’d sit and watch as the sun sank, waves crashed against the rocks, and the breeze touched my skin. It was healing. Sometimes I wept there. Tears on a park bench, because deep down, I thought my life would be here.

People asked if I had seen them. My answer: I had no intention to. I didn’t come here for that. The last time I saw him was at the Waikiki Yacht Club. Funny enough, my walks took me past that very place to enter the park. It’s only a memory now.

Through it all, I am grateful to God. I don’t know where I’d be without Him. What I do know is this: He is always with me, even when I fall short. Life isn’t fair. Jesus never promised it would be without trials. But He did promise He would always be with us.

This time here has been for me to slow down, rest, reflect, and renew. Healing has no deadline. I may never reach a place of complete healing, but I am reaching a place of growth, of deeper knowing, of surrender. Letting go of what isn’t mine to hold. Trusting that God knows best.

There is grace in every wave. And I’m stepping out of the water knowing I am never alone.

What I know is this: I always need God. In everything.

I saw a headline by Erika Kirk: “I forgive him.” It struck me. I thought about all the times I prayed that same prayer, through tears: “I forgive him, God. I forgive them.” And yet, the grief still lingered. But I know it won’t last forever.

The words in my heart right now: “For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Oh yes, because I know I can’t do this life without God.