I miss home.
It’s the end of month 4 of this shindig.
It’s been a long time since I slept in a room by myself. We’ve eaten a LOT of rice. I’ve worn the same shirt countless times. The rain doesn’t smell nice. Most streets don’t have a clear sidewalk. Things in general just smell.
I miss being home. I miss the smell of the rain. I miss the smell of the sweet clean country air of Kansas. I miss aspens in the fall. I miss snow. I miss the sound of my car locking behind me on my way up to my cozy apartment. I miss wearing real pajamas. I miss brushing my teeth without getting sweaty.
In short, I miss familiarity.
America is truly blessed. We are blessed with freedom, and we are generally blessed with relatively easy, comfortable lives.
Even after this trip of abandonment I get to go home to my closet full of clothes, a big warm bed, and access to so much that is only dreamed of by most people in the world.
Before the World Race, I knew this about America’s relationship to the rest of the world and how blessed we are, but I think I had the wrong reaction to it. I started to become disgusted with America. I became so turned off to material things in general- “Do you really use it that much? Just get rid of it!” I became frustrated with myself and with the rest of America for our level of comfort.
Today we visited a particularly poor neighborhood. They live in government housing right next to a dirty river that floods frequently. Floods often completely cover the roofs of these 2-3 story buildings, but they have nowhere else to go. The houses have been moved back a few times by the government, but that offers very little help. We walked through the community, played with the kids, said hello, and smiled as we went. Kids were everywhere in the streets, laundry was done in tubs on doorsteps, and dogs and cats scavenged for anything that would provide sustenance for their skinny bodies.
Yet the thing that has struck me most about the Filipino people is their generosity and hospitality. One woman invited us into her house and served us all RC Cola as she raved about how good it is and how we “just have to try it.” Bible studies are conducted in the streets. They meet in this little tin roof-covered area with a table and some chairs to teach kids about the Bible. They might not have much, but they utilize what they have and make the best of it. They do not lose hope. They don’t give up meeting together as the Body of Christ. They give out of the little they have to show Christ’s love and to raise their children with hope in a God who will never leave or forsake them, a God that calls them HIS sons and daughters.
On our way back from this visit, I was reflecting on what we had seen, and I was struck with this thought:
“You don’t have to be ashamed of what the Lord has blessed you with. Thank Him for it, and be faithful with it. It’s His.”
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” Luke 12: 48b
