I am a person of written words. I especially enjoy expressing words on paper, or sticky notes, to be exact. Each time before I leave for an international trip, I have a habit of carefully placing sticky note love letters for each member of my family to find.
There’s one thing in life I know, and that is that my Heavenly Father loves loving on me. I even like to believe He is bias in His love for me. After all, He designed me perfectly. He made me with and for a purpose. He has huge plans for my life. He created me exactly the way He wants me, every bit of 4’7”. I am certain He knew I would have a great love for travel, and in my travels I would often be called to minister to people groups in which everybody is short-statured. In ministering to these groups of people, I feel much less conspicuous, and I feel that perhaps I’m more accepted because I’m short. To put it simply- I believe God made me travel-sized.
As God loves on me, He loves on me in my most favorite way to be loved on. He sends me sticky note love letters. Each day He hides a sticky note for me. Sometimes more than one. On some days the note is harder to find than others, but if I look for it, it’s there, somewhere. Sometimes it’s something simple like the blue of the sky. Sometimes it’s the green of the grass in an otherwise dry or paved surrounding. Sometimes it’s the privilege to hold a new-born baby and smell his soft, delicate skin. Sometimes, it’s a bird. Other times, a colorful patch of flowers blooming among heaps of trash. Sometimes it’s something big and obvious, like a kind gesture from someone I’ve just met. Every day a love note is hidden, but regretfully, not every day is it found. I must intentionally look for it. And when I do, I find it. It’s a very exciting way to go about life. It’s like a treasure hunt; I never know what I’m going to find. I can just picture God stroking His chin as He thinks about what surprise He’s going to send me next.
This month has been a month of sticky notes and wonderful surprises. We as a team have been blessed over and beyond what I anticipated. Didn’t God say, however, He would do more than we could even ask or think? He did. And He did just that. The people of Costa Rica have been so, so generous, giving from their meager means. They have loved and accepted us beyond what we deserved. They have shown us that happiness does not come from things, but rather from the Giver of all good gifts. God has taken care of me personally, and also corporately, as a team. He saw to it that I could visit sloths with my team leader Erika. If that wasn’t enough, He provided free transportation with two girls we met at the sloth sanctuary, to go eat lunch at the most tranquil chocolatier and cafe. From there, we had another free ride back to San Jose. Basically, the entire day was one great, big love note from God. On a different day, I was privileged to eat frozen yogurt, a coconut crepe, and a pina colada, all while having an unplanned adventure with my team mate Lucie, with who I was running around town looking for a photo print shop. While we were on this venture, the sun was shining happily, the sky was blue, and life was good. There’s a hundred other sticky notes God hid for me throughout the month, but it would tire you to hear of them all.
I encourage you: look for the sticky notes God is hiding for you. He loves you just as much as me. Find the way He delights in loving on you. He’s a personal Father, and He’ll love on you in your most favorite love language. I just know it.
This month has been easier than I expected. At the same time, there were days I was tired physically and emotionally, and all I wanted to do was to sit down for a cup of coffee with my family around the dinner table, and just rest. Rest from the pressure of life in a new culture and new community and new friends. Rest from saying “hola” one hundred times a day. I just wanted to be, and not talk to anyone. But, resting wasn’t in our vocabulary much. It was in those moments I knew God was asking me if I would run to Him, or if instead I would feel sorry for myself and wish that someone would hold me for a while. God knew He has everything I could ever possibly need, I just had to be willing to expend the effort to reach out and receive it. I knew that too, and I know it still. My God has been faithful, and He has refreshed me and strengthened my feeble knees.
Currently as I’m writing, I am half curled, half stretched out across two seats on the coach our squad will be traveling in for the next eight hours or so. We are saying “adios” to Costa Rica and “hola” to Nicaragua. I can scarcely believe my knowledge that the entire first month of my eleven is already gone. One month down and ten to go?! That’s crazy. It went by so, so quickly. Our first destination in Nicaragua is Granada. We will have debrief for several days there, then we will do ministry somewhere else in Nicaragua (I don’t know where) with our entire squad for the rest of the month. Honestly, I’m not amped about it. I detest large group settings. I find it overwhelming, especially with people I’ve met not that long ago. You can pray for me.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for every prayer that ascends on behalf of my team and I. I appreciate all of you. I will be social media fasting until the end of the month, so please comment on my blog, or email me, to stay in touch. My email is: [email protected]. Also, if you feel you can give financially to support me on this Kingdom journey, please follow the link on the upper right hand corner of my blog. No amount is too meager. All of it is part of sowing seeds, and a share of the harvest will be yours. Be blessed, my dear readers. You are valued, by God and me.
All my love.
