A Series of Trade Offs

      When I lived in the homeless shelter in Denver, frequently I would complain about one thing or another. Sometimes I would grumble: “If wish I had more time/money/friends/gas in my car/(things that seemed important at the time).” One day, when I was having a “low” point in the week, my mentor asked me about my disposition. I vented and complained that I couldn’t find what I wanted out of this life like all of my friends. He simply looked at me, without flinching, and said, “Chase, life is a series of trade-offs.”
         At the time, I didn’t realize the amount of wisdom that was in that statement. Going from Guatemala to here in La Libertad, El Salvador was a very hard thing for me, because I finally realized the weight of that statement. My previous ministry family was finally beginning to feel like family.  Upon leaving for El Salvador, there was not a dry eye in the house.  We arrived here and I realize what I have traded:
 
I have traded a wonderful family of Guatemalan people for a kind hearted El Salvadorian woman who is the embodiment of servant hood.
 
I have traded speeding motorcycles with babies on the back for the city life traffic, complete with no turning signals and near wrecks around every corner.
 
I have traded ministry to prostitutes and orphans for ministry with more orphans, home churches, and hospital evangelism.
 
I have traded boisterous morning worship sessions to quiet bible studies with bottomless cups of coffee.
 
I have traded being an admirer of the Spanish language to, by the grace of God, an interpreter.

I have traded riding in the back of a big white panel van to cramming seven people in a small Carolla.
 
I have traded a loving family for another loving family with a God that stands above it all, smiling down on me, because He is THAT good.