angelina, 07/10/2008 12:03, Views: 509

We're back safe and sound home again. I can't quite describe how good it felt to be back home in Guatemala. Even though the scent of our room was of mold (everything gets damp during the rainy season) and we realized how old our house is (we're still desperately searching for a new house), home is home and living once again with 15 other people was like Heaven - at least for the first few days.. ha!

I must interject here that we're coming up to the 2 year mark of my being here in Guatemala (Kevin passed his last month since he arrived a month earlier than I). This may come as a surprise to some, but I have never in my life lived in a country for longer than 2 years. This isn't because I serve 2 year terms, but rather because it just seems to be that way, that when I get near to the 2 year mark, the Lord somehow moves me along to a new location. Granted, in Russia after being there almost two years our whole team moved to Ukraine so we were essentially the same team, only in a new place. Before I was 17 I was with my parents, and being the "pioneering" type they moved frequently from place to place after establishing missionary works in different countries.

All that to say, Guatemala will be the first country that I'll have the privilege to live in for longer than that 2 year period of time! Guatemala really is a wonderful place to be, even though there is a lot of crime and it's probably one of the most dangerous cities to live in, the Lord has protected us and continues to do so every day. Every day I go out I meet more kind, sincere and helpful people. Our work is growing slowly, but steadily. We're still a ways away from our goal of having a majority of our support coming from the field, but every month the Lord raises up new people who want to help us with monthly support and I love the challenge of working towards those goals. - A big thanks to all reading who are supporting us, you're an answer to many fervent prayers!

Time is sometimes hard to come by, as it no doubt is with everyone in the world today, but I've been learning how to "rest in the Lord" and trust Him for the many things I can't seem to get to personally do every day.

Physical or Spiritual?

I asked Kevin the other day whether we're really doing the job the way it needs to be done. I talked to a young professional a few days back who said he'd prefer to give his monthly support to people who are doing more in the physical - doctors giving vaccinations, those running homes for the elderly etc.. This discouraged me a bit and made me wonder if we should do more of the kinds of things which have more immediate and obvious fruit instead of the laborious sometimes unseen work of ministering to people's spirits, helping them to build a strong relationship with Jesus and strengthen the foundation of their spiritual lives which is what we dedicate most of our missionary lives to. I know I can always rely on Kevin to help me have a better view and perspective on what really matters. He reminded me that what's most important is that we're doing what Jesus wants us to do, what really matters in the big scope of things and what will matter when we get to Heaven and look back on our earthly lives. 

So many live for the physical, and I have to admit that sometimes the physical looms much larger than the spiritual in importance. But that's where our vision is skewed. The Heavenly Vision is living for the eternal rather than the immediate here and now. It's seeing where that soul, rich or poor, is headed after this life is done and over. Will he get a vaccination that will help him avoid a sickness which would make him sick for a few days or will he get a personal connection with the Maker of the universe and he able to find out and know what God's plan is for his life. Happiness is not a thing, it's a state of being and with Jesus by your constant side, you need not fear sickness or even death! - Something I dare say a vaccination can't bring.

So, yes I'll keep giving Jesus to as many as I can, I'll keep teaching anyone I meet who is interested about His love and care for them and His desire for them to get to know Him personally so that He can help them in their lives and make them 1000 times more blessed. It's not religion I'm sharing, it's a personal friendship with the most powerful being around and it's worth more than any food, clothing or vaccinations given which are here today and gone tomorrow. Jesus is what lasts, and I'm proud to be in His business.

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