I had high hopes of updating this blog on the trip. Perhaps its the fact that I'm not one of those that likes to chronicle every action of the day. Or maybe its been the lack of wifi and power intermittently that seems to just take it out of me.
The truth is that I'm at a loss for words on this trip. It will take quite a while, maybe a lifetime, to fully digest this experience in context of my life in the States. As I try to capture this for you that might still be reading this blog, let me at least just give you a few things that I've started to pull from the experience here in Colombia.
1) I have a new definition of "I am third": We have a saying in F3 about being third. God first, Family/Others second, and you third. For the most part that is a nice saying, makes for a great t-shirt. Watching a man kill his best goat for you, cook it, and then serve it to you while you are in the chair, at a table, under the shade in the middle of the desert while his hungry family and he looks on with gratitude and hospitality.... that is I am third. I've never felt such generousity in my life. I actually have tears in my eyes as I write this.
2) I have a new set of heroes: Meeting the missionaries who go in to these parts of the world, raise their families in challenging conditions, and all while smiling and serving God. We can never appreciate their sacrifice for this work until we walk a mile or two or more in their shoes.
3) A saying I heard here.... "These people have nothing but God....we have everything but God"... Yep, that might just sum up the differences between our comfortable christianity and what these folks experience every day. When they pray for a sick child, pray for a son that is away in incarceration, pray for a family member, there is no Plan B. There is not immediate back up for the doctor in many cases. They pray believing God every time for his intervention in their life.
4) Can I love without judging with full compassion and grace? The experience of just serving and not asking questions of a man raising 8 kids in a hut on the side of a mountain who needs a few steps up to his house was a powerful experience. It was so moving to just go serve and not ask questions. Just do. As Christ did, he just went and ministered to people with no preconception, judgement, or qualification.
5) We have a huge mission field at home in the states. For all of those that have prayed, funded, and supported our trip. Thank you. We do have such an opportunity to share more with others where we live at home. Said differently, this is not an event, but a step on a journey of serving.
I'm sure I'll have more over the next few weeks when I can digest all of this fully. Right now I'm having a hard time uploading photos.
Friday, September 11, 2015
Saturday, September 5, 2015
Day 1 - the universal observation on men...
Day 1 in Colombia:
Last night we enjoyed a fantastic cookout with the leadership of the LaEsperanza church here in Santa Marta. 25 of their men from the church leadership and school came to greet our team of 10 with open arms and a traditional cookout complete with Chorizo, Carne Asada, and some peach tea. We spoke in broken English and Spanish.
Mostly we just smiled at each other. We sat together, tried to cut steak with breaking plastic forks and knives on styrofoam plates. I was blown away at hearing some of their stories of faith, how long they had been serving as leaders of the church and the hardships they have endured to build a community of believers in this city and part of the world.
I was humbled to share a message with the men from 1 Peter 4: 7 - 11 talking about serving each other with hospitality without grumbling. It also discusses the role as stewards of God's grace to each other. We were humbled by their great show of hospitality. God's grace was certainly present as we just experienced each other as men unified in our great understanding of God's grace and mercy in our lives.
This morning, as we are about to deploy to the desert for 4 nights, we enjoyed a breakfast on the roof here. (pictured here). I watched a young Colombian family join us for the wonderful breakfast spread they offer here at our hotel. This man, his wife, and two kids are decked out for the beach. You could tell, just like me and most of the men reading this blog, that he had a tough morning already. Sunscreen all over the kids (halfway I might add), his wife looked like she barely was speaking to him, and they were trying to get the kids to eat some fruit loops before they went over to the beach 2 blocks away.
I thought - hey, this guy isnt much different than me - right? I mean he probably busted his tail all year for this vacation, drove who knows how long to get here, get these kids out to the ocean and just enjoy a nice time with everyone. And like some of our vacations, the best laid plans sometimes go off the chain when we least expect it.
As men, we all want to provide these nice things for our families. We want to build memories and traditions that will last lifetimes. Regardless of culture or place in the world, we are called to keep pushing to make that happen. It has been such a great experience seeing how other men across the world struggle to be that man and yet all of us are blessed with God's grace and mercy.
Off to sleep in the hammock with some alleged wild desert dogs. Can't wait to see what God has in store for us with the Wayuu people.
Last night we enjoyed a fantastic cookout with the leadership of the LaEsperanza church here in Santa Marta. 25 of their men from the church leadership and school came to greet our team of 10 with open arms and a traditional cookout complete with Chorizo, Carne Asada, and some peach tea. We spoke in broken English and Spanish.
Mostly we just smiled at each other. We sat together, tried to cut steak with breaking plastic forks and knives on styrofoam plates. I was blown away at hearing some of their stories of faith, how long they had been serving as leaders of the church and the hardships they have endured to build a community of believers in this city and part of the world.
I was humbled to share a message with the men from 1 Peter 4: 7 - 11 talking about serving each other with hospitality without grumbling. It also discusses the role as stewards of God's grace to each other. We were humbled by their great show of hospitality. God's grace was certainly present as we just experienced each other as men unified in our great understanding of God's grace and mercy in our lives.
This morning, as we are about to deploy to the desert for 4 nights, we enjoyed a breakfast on the roof here. (pictured here). I watched a young Colombian family join us for the wonderful breakfast spread they offer here at our hotel. This man, his wife, and two kids are decked out for the beach. You could tell, just like me and most of the men reading this blog, that he had a tough morning already. Sunscreen all over the kids (halfway I might add), his wife looked like she barely was speaking to him, and they were trying to get the kids to eat some fruit loops before they went over to the beach 2 blocks away.
I thought - hey, this guy isnt much different than me - right? I mean he probably busted his tail all year for this vacation, drove who knows how long to get here, get these kids out to the ocean and just enjoy a nice time with everyone. And like some of our vacations, the best laid plans sometimes go off the chain when we least expect it.
As men, we all want to provide these nice things for our families. We want to build memories and traditions that will last lifetimes. Regardless of culture or place in the world, we are called to keep pushing to make that happen. It has been such a great experience seeing how other men across the world struggle to be that man and yet all of us are blessed with God's grace and mercy.
Off to sleep in the hammock with some alleged wild desert dogs. Can't wait to see what God has in store for us with the Wayuu people.
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