It’s the last day of the month of October and the heat is still kicking as much as it was in the summer. I’ve come to terms with the reality that I won’t experience an authentic, northeast autumn season this year so please, eat up on all the pumpkin goodies for me.
I currently find myself in the beautiful country of Brazil. I know I’ve put off writing a blog for weeks now. My bad. So many good things have happened and even a few curveballs have been thrown in, but so far my time in South America has been invaluable. I’ll let you guys in on some sweet moments from the past weeks that include failed plans and a whole lot of faith in Jesus.
As I mentioned in my last blog, our mission these last two months has been to find “unsung heroes” aka ministry contacts so that future world racers can come back to these countries and have ministries to partner with. It sounds crazy, but we have literally pioneered through Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and now Brazil without knowing anyone beforehand and God has blown us away EVERY time by providing us with men and women of peace to stay with and build relationships with.
By the way, to follow up with my last blog, our time in the interior of Guyana was incredible. God opened so many doors and blessed us with a sweet time there. He spoke so gently to my heart as I rode down the Pomeroon River one afternoon. I had been feeling a bit guilty for all of the blessings He had been pouring over us because I didn’t feel like I deserved any of it. Yet, I heard Him say that I don’t need to do anything to receive His love. I realized in that moment how I have been living with such a misconstrued conception of His love and goodness. For so long, I’ve walked around with the mentality that if I’m not in a “good” place with God, then I don’t deserve His goodness. But do you realize how messed up that is? The point is, I’m not perfect and He understands that and yet still loves me. It’s such a simple concept, yet it spoke so much truth to me during my time in the interior. It’s a truth I’ve heard over and over again, but for some reason it finally made sense for me. Thanks God, for the good gifts you give to your children.
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So… ever heard the phrase: “Man plans, God laughs”?
What happens when you move on to your next country without a game plan because your plans fell through? What happens when you don’t even speak the native language and you need a place to stay that same night with a tight budget? Let’s just say that options start running thin and your faith gets tested.
Let me tell you about an experience my team had in French Guiana.
I promise you, the ending is good.
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We woke up at around 4:45am in Paramaribo, Suriname to catch a bus that would take us to the border that crosses into French Guiana. My team left with another team from our squad in order to cut down on travel expenses. We had planned to stay the night at a camping ground in French Guiana where we could set up hammocks, but when we arrived it was closed. We told our bus driver to take us to the next city, Kourou, instead and see if we could find something there. He dropped us off at the beach, and at that point we had no game plan.
It was Sunday so basically everything was closed. We walked to the nearest McDonald’s (because free wifi) and tried to get some information on local places to stay, but nothing was working out. We all stopped at one point and came together to ask the Lord what He had for us because we didn’t have any options other than sleeping at the beach at that point.
After some time at McDonald’s, Corrie (from the other team) met a local named Heidi. After hearing about our situation, Heidi began making phone calls to everyone she knew and she did not stop until she found a place for us to stay. Before the night came, she found us two different families and each team went with a family.
My team stayed with the Clair’s, a beautiful French family of six. The mom, Magali, welcomed us with open arms and it was so nice to stay not only in a house, but a home. It’s crazy how God provided us with a place to stay that exceeded our expectations. But, are you surprised? I’m not. I’ve come to believe wholeheartedly that we never get the short end of the stick with God.
Magali shared with us how at church earlier that day, the priest was encouraging the congregation to have open hearts and open hands to outsiders and now she was living it out! Magali, her husband Bruno, and her four beautiful children treated us like family and all twelve of us shared meals together and conversed in the little English they spoke. We helped around the house, picked papayas off the trees in the backyard, and even walked the kids to school in the morning. One night, the kids even brought out their instruments and played us some songs. I loved every minute of it.
The four days we spent with them taught me so much about the value of family and how that is your most important ministry. The best part of this was we have no game plan coming into French Guiana, but through our reliance on God He provided above and beyond – just like He always does. I woke up every morning super thankful to be in a home, not to mention the awesome papaya jam Magali had for us on the table every morning with fresh French bread. All I can say is that the words “trust in the Lord” became so much more real to me and I can now say that when I had no place to go, He made a way. He is faithful. I hope to live as generous as the Clair’s were with us.
Thank you, French Guiana, for teaching me these life lessons.
