I’ve been here in Costa Rica for a little over 3 weeks now and have learned so much already. My team and I are mainly doing children’s ministry for the next two months here and are partnering with two different ministries. These ministries are similar in ways but still so very different. We get to love on children in their own communities and we get to build relationships with them. I’ll go more into detail on what that looks like in another blog soon!!
Sometimes I’ve forgotten what it’s like to be a child again. It’s been awhile. I remember always watching Disney movies, wearing big bows, and having too many stuffed animals as friends. I was an artistic child. I fell in love (I can’t stress this enough) with dance. I started dance when I was 3 and went on for 10 years. There was just something about it that made me so giddy and wanting more of it. To me, it was a passion. I enjoyed every moment of it and it brought my soul so much life. Then, I got into singing and theatre. It was my outlet of pure joy…..it still is! But, I was also a clumsy child. I ran into things and got hurt by stumbling and falling on the ground so many times. I had scrapped knees and bruised arms. I would climb trees and fall off of them. I would ride my bike and fall off of it. I would jump on the trampoline and land the wrong way. I was like every other child, but I thought I was just clumsier. I still am….some things never change.
My parents were gracious to me when I stumbled. They took care of me when I got hurt and encouraged me to get back up when I fell off my bike. They hugged me when I felt pain instead of telling me to get over it. They wiped my tears away when I was crying from a stubbed toe. They were gracious because they knew it was all new to me.
As a child, I was learning how to do everything. I was learning how to walk. I was learning how to speak. I was learning how to read. I was learning how to feel certain things. I was learning what pain was and what excitement was. I was learning how to laugh freely. I was learning how to dance. I was learning what foods I was fond of and which ones I wasn’t too keen on. I was learning how to sing and how beautiful it is. was learning how to have fun. I was learning who little Brook Brook was.
In this place of life I’m in right now, this is exactly what I’m walking through. The Lord has been revealing new revelations of who He is to me and who I am to Him. I am His child. I am His daughter. He is my Heavenly Father. I’m in awe of who He is. I’m in that eyes-full-of-wonder place with The Lord. That kind of wonder that you have when looking at the night sky as all of the stars are out shinning so bright. That kind of wonder that you have when looking at the mountains and ocean. The Lord is teaching me how to walk when I stumble and fall. He is teaching me how to listen and how to speak. He is teaching me how to dance with Him and to be free in His love. He is teaching me how to laugh with joy and to sing songs of praise of who He is to me. He is teaching me how to see people through His eyes.
Psalm 30:11-12 has been my praise.
“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever!”
The Lord is gracious to me when I stumble and scrape my knees. He hugs me when I fall and picks me back up. So right now in this season, I’m learning to be a child again in the eyes of my Heavenly Father. It is so fun. I never want to grow up 🙂
