a lot of people have heard me say, “I don’t think I want to get married.” two and a half years ago, my heart was completely broken. (maybe I was being dramatic, I don’t know. I just know how bad it hurt.) my faith in relationships deteriorated and I started believing that marriage couldn’t be worth it. my sister and I would often run around the house screaming, “love isn’t real!” just to make our point. it seemed more appealing to do life alone, only be responsible for myself and not risk worrying if one day my significant other would change their mind…because if it could happen after a 6 years of dating, why not 6 years of marriage?
this month we are working with drug and alcohol rehabilitation patients…and I’m sure when I told my mom that, she was hoping that this month would scare me away from alcohol forever. but, the Lord uses things differently than we plan sometimes. on our first day of ministry we broke up into three teams. one team would spend the month working in the chicos house, one team would be with the chicas, and one team would be with the parajas (the couples). I don’t know why it wasn’t a big choice in my mind, but the automatic, first choice was the parajas.
the first few days were a little awkward, but as we were around them more, we all got more comfortable. they started acting like themselves and I started testing out my spanish with them. it is just so much fun. in the mornings is manual labor around the home, but in the afternoons we talk, laugh, and eat together. we play foosball, soccer, work on English and tell stories. we build relationships and talk about Jesus. this morning they even came to our home and serenaded us with a guitar and brought us little bottles of perfume wrapped up. throughout the week my team would often sit back and say…I can’t believe this is our life, that we get to do this.
the most beautiful part of this month for me is watching these couples interact within their own relationships….they truly love each other. the husbands pour their wives juice for lunch, they tease each other and giggle. they are like teenagers in love. they pray together and read their Bible together. I even get to watch one couple raise their child…the way they discipline with love, read each other, know when the other needs a break, and love Ezekiel is such an imperfectly perfect picture of what family looks like.
the best part of watching this and the biggest contribution to changing my perspective of relationships is how broken these people are. they are so far from what a movie relationship looks like. they don’t make these relationships look unattainable…impossible to reach. they have lived on the streets, have scars on their bodies, in their minds and on their hearts from what they’ve been through – they are broken people, looking for Jesus together. they forgive each other for their shortcomings, compliment each other and help each other grow. their stories scream redemption and grace, both from God to them and with each other.
the Lord is using these people and their relationships to start to heal this wound on my heart that I thought was going to follow me through life. He has shown me that it’s not that I need to find someone that I trust to love me forever, but, more importantly, to find someone that I trust to continue to pursue love, both for the Lord and for me, forever…and in that, I’ve seen it here in El Alto, Bolivia – a marriage can be so beautiful.
I dont want to post too often and overwhelm your inboxes – but I really wanted to let everyone know what ministry, and my life, look like here in Bolivia…it´s incredible! I also wanted to let you know that I´M OFFICIALLY FULLY FUNDED. I honestly cannot begin to say thank you enough – the opportunities the Lord has given me to laugh, grow, talk about him and love on people have been priceless. Thank you all – couldn´t have done it without you!
