Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Through a Window
Everytime you look through a window there is so much to see, so much to learn. Windows provide an opportunity for us to observe something that is external to our present situation. Windows invite us into worlds that we are currently separated from, but often can choose to be connected with.
That's what happened when we looked through this window today.
In Santa Anna, a new region we are prayerfully considering to work in, there is a school/community centre. Here the leaders, provide care, love and 3 meals to children age 2 to 5, often because the parents of the children are unable to provide these things. They teach children and tenderly hold them when needed. They prepare them for the time when they will enter school. Most of all they communicate the love of Jesus Christ.
The workers here do not receive a salary. The resources here are not supplied by a budget. The food here does not come from well stocked pantries or fridges. Yet they always have what they need, when they need it.
God is their Provider!
They trust His faithful provision and therefore are free to serve these children with a deep rooted love for Jesus Christ.
Though we look through a window, it is an invitation to enter in...
That's what happened when we looked through this window today.
In Santa Anna, a new region we are prayerfully considering to work in, there is a school/community centre. Here the leaders, provide care, love and 3 meals to children age 2 to 5, often because the parents of the children are unable to provide these things. They teach children and tenderly hold them when needed. They prepare them for the time when they will enter school. Most of all they communicate the love of Jesus Christ.
The workers here do not receive a salary. The resources here are not supplied by a budget. The food here does not come from well stocked pantries or fridges. Yet they always have what they need, when they need it.
God is their Provider!
They trust His faithful provision and therefore are free to serve these children with a deep rooted love for Jesus Christ.
Though we look through a window, it is an invitation to enter in...
Tuesday, April 2, 2013
And We're Off!
Well it took a little while to get going but we did arrive. After receiving an email at 2:30am to tell us that our flight was cancelled, we managed to get onto a direct flight that had us arrive in El Salvador just 2 hours later than we had intended...we can live with that! I had prepped my young travelling companion the night before we left that one of the important characteristics of international travel was patience, as things often don't go quite as you except. She did great and endured a long day with grace (note the picture...yes she's sleeping on the airport floor; she was there for almost an hour...).
As soon as we reached the hotel the rest of the leaders had just started their first round of meetings. I was just on time to lead the devotion. While these kind of meetings are not my favourite thing to do, it is always a privilege to connect with leaders from across our country who share a deep passion for the Lord and for the needy people of El Salvador. One thing you realize quickly with this group, is that their involvement in El Salvador is an extension of what the Lord has been doing for many years in their lives. What a blessing to glean from their experience and their commitment to serve the Lord.
Throughout our flight down I read an excellent book called "Friendship at the Margins". I'll likely share a few quotes from it, in this space over this week and probably beyond. Here's the first:
"We've discovered that commitment to community building requires fidelity over time...the work is slow, small and often undramatic...it takes years to build the kind of relationships that result in transformation."
This quote reminds me that it is so important to identify the "agents of change" that the Lord has established who are committed to serving a local community over a long period of time; once they are identified it is then crucial for us to listen and learn from them so that anything we add is in the context of their perspective and benefits to the whole community over a long period of time.
That's why I keep coming back here and that's why it's a privilege to be part of this group of people! Thanks for your prayer.
Deve
As soon as we reached the hotel the rest of the leaders had just started their first round of meetings. I was just on time to lead the devotion. While these kind of meetings are not my favourite thing to do, it is always a privilege to connect with leaders from across our country who share a deep passion for the Lord and for the needy people of El Salvador. One thing you realize quickly with this group, is that their involvement in El Salvador is an extension of what the Lord has been doing for many years in their lives. What a blessing to glean from their experience and their commitment to serve the Lord.Throughout our flight down I read an excellent book called "Friendship at the Margins". I'll likely share a few quotes from it, in this space over this week and probably beyond. Here's the first:
"We've discovered that commitment to community building requires fidelity over time...the work is slow, small and often undramatic...it takes years to build the kind of relationships that result in transformation."
This quote reminds me that it is so important to identify the "agents of change" that the Lord has established who are committed to serving a local community over a long period of time; once they are identified it is then crucial for us to listen and learn from them so that anything we add is in the context of their perspective and benefits to the whole community over a long period of time.
That's why I keep coming back here and that's why it's a privilege to be part of this group of people! Thanks for your prayer.
Deve
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