There are few situations more frustrating than having bank issues overseas. Technically, a person could go on the race without any extra money and just survive off the donations they had to raise. However, when you’re living on a compound with no wifi, you have to pay a taxi driver to take you somewhere. If you go to a coffee shop then you probably have to buy something to use the wifi, and if you go to a hotel you probably have to pay some kind of fee as well. Factor in that soap isn’t a part of the budget and you’ll realize that personal money is really important, and that’s not even including all the fun things you can do on off days. The more personal money you have, the more once-in-a-lifetime cool opportunities you can do. Before leaving America, I worked and saved up my own personal money, and I took a lot of pride in that.
Ever since I came on the missions field, I have been struggling with my bank account. At Month 1 Debrief in Cambodia, I accidentally let an ATM swallow my card and had to wait 3 months for a new one. During that time, I had to ask people to pull out money for me and then I’d Venmo them the difference, but around month 3 my Venmo account stopped working. Paying people back became a huge pain after that.
Then we moved to Ethiopia, spent one month with no card (though I didn’t need to buy anything anyways), and received a new card at Midpoint Debrief in Addis Ababa. I pulled out money for the first time in three months, only to find out later that I forgot to transfer money from one bank account to another and that all I pulled out was all I had for the week. It was kind of a bummer, but I got by and made it through until we returned to our village in Harbu Chulule. I had to wait a couple weeks before the money transferred from one account to another.
After that I moved to Nicaragua and was alright for the first few weeks. Whenever I switch continents, I transfer the money I’ve set aside for the next three months from one account into the one connected to my card. This has helped me keep a budget and a general awareness for all thats going on in my account. Well, about a week and a half ago, I found out that the money I transferred still hasn’t transferred and that the money from Ethiopia is all spent. The account says the money transferred, but my balance says $0.20. Time and time again I have gone into town expecting to have a working debit card, and time and time again the money isn’t there. I would go into town with some squad mates, asking them to pay my taxi fare to the bank and then I’ll pay them back, only to find that I need them to also buy me a fare home.
God likes to teach me lessons through my bank account, mostly because I rarely respond like a good Christian. I don’t know of anything that instantly frustrates or pisses me off more than when my bank account isn’t working. Additionally, I HATE asking people for help. Even when I was in Cambodia and could instantly pay people back, I still loathed asking any of my teammates to take out money for me. Oh I’d give and borrow money to people until I was blue in the face, but borrow money or ask for help? No. Way.
So what has God taught me? Obviously, He has revealed that I have a deep rooted issue with pride. I was proud to be an independent person in America. During my senior year, I paid for all my gas and all the activities I did on my own. Sometimes my mom would help, but for the most part I was completely independent and I loved it. Being on the race isn’t like that. Aside from my bank issues, I can’t just come and go when I please. Sometimes I have to sacrifice what I want for other people, and sometimes they have to sacrifice what they want for me. See, God didn’t make people to be independent of each other. The church was made to be a community of believers living and growing together. They provide for each other and come to each other for whatever they need. I was trying to live a life without community, and God taught me that I need community.
Another thing God has taught me is patience. Before coming on the race, I never prayed to God for patience because I knew He’d teach me patience through impatient situations. There have been a few times I have gone to the ATM this last week expecting a full bank account and finding the same $0.20 staring back at me. Its not that the money isn’t there, its just that it isn’t there yet. I know once the money transfers that I’ll be able to pay everyone back and become financially independent again, its just a matter of making it from here to there. While I feel inclined to become angry or stressed, theres nothing I can do so I ought to spend my emotions on something else. Just because I had to ask someone for a taxi fare home doesn’t mean that my whole day is ruined.
During this time I’ve learned a new level of compassion for people who don’t have enough money. I spent a few years in American living off little and having little money to go around, but I’ve experienced a new level of little while being on the race. Not only that, but in every situation I’ve been in where I don’t have enough money, God has always provided through my squad mates. I live in a community of people who will give to each other without a second thought. Whether its borrowing clothes, chargers, or money, my people are always there to help me. People don’t have that across the world. In fact, in many third world countries they have no one but themselves. I’ve seen people living in tin houses, on the streets with no government to provide them aid, and in dirt huts. I have seen people walk a mile for a jug of water. I have seen the least of these and how they live, and every time it convicts me that I’m doing just fine.
In short, my bank account has taught me multiple levels of humility. I know what it is to have little and I know what it is to have much, and in both situations I praise the Lord. I need to ask for help sometimes and I need to have patience and I need to remember that God has never let me down before. I haven’t always been able to do everything I want to do, but I’ve always been taken care of.
I know this isn’t your typical blog about life on the field or the people I serve, but one of the biggest lessons God has taught me is about money. I don’t need it nearly as much as I think I do, and the only god I have room for in my life is the one who raises the dead. I could devote my energy and emotions towards all my frustration about my bank account for the last seven months, or I can point it back to my God who has provided my every need. So I wrote all this to say, God is good and I am doing just fine.
As of right now my bank account has been fixed and I’m a FREE WOMAN!! Thank you Jesus!! I hope you all have a blessed day <3
~CLS
