During each month of the Race, God has given me a specific sense of what he wants me to work on to become more like His Son, Jesus. Along with these senses (or “words” as Christian jargon dubs them), he has led me to certain Scripture passages that provide an example for me to follow. Although challenging, these words have given me purpose in how to continue refining my character each day throughout this journey.
EMPOWER, NOT ENABLE
In Month One in Costa Rica, the word that the Lord gave me was “Empower, not enable.” The pastor and staff that we worked with did not speak any English, and the girls on my team spoke very limited Spanish. Therefore, I was asked to be an interpreter between my team and our hosts.
I found out my job description before leaving for the trip, so I was very excited. After beating the Spanish DuoLingo phone application in a few days, I figured I was ready for my position. Although I may have been ready for the linguistic portion, I struggled to discern my role throughout the month.
At first, I needed to facilitate nearly every conversation and interaction between anyone on my team and anyone with whom we worked, met, or spent time. I began to take on extra responsibilities like planning travel, organizing our schedule, and making ministry decisions. After a couple weeks, I found myself frustrated, exhausted and resentful.
This is when God spoke the word to me: Empower, not enable. Jesus taught and served with his apostles for three years. When it was time for Him to leave the earth, He imparted the power and authority of the Holy Spirit to his followers so they could continue His work. In Acts 1 Jesus says, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere.”
After reading through this passage, I talked to my team about the importance of decision-making together and attempting to learn to communicate individually. They were very supportive and helpful in moving forward with those goals. It was relieving for me, and I found myself excited again about my role.
BE INTERRUPTIBLE
In Month Two in Nicaragua, the word that the Lord gave me was “Be interruptible.” I thrive on having a schedule. I prefer to plan out my days to ensure I achieve my accomplishments.
However, life doesn’t always work that way. Especially on the Race. Especially in different countries. Starting times are suggestions, directions sound like “Go up for awhile and some blocks over,” bus route lengths range significantly, and pastors ask you to sing songs or preach a message in the middle of the service.
God showed me how interruptible Jesus was while I led a women’s bible study about John 4. Jesus was on his way to Galilee, but first he had to pass through Samaria. Tired from the journey, he stopped at a well to get a drink.
While there, he met a woman and took the opportunity to share the truth of “living water,” which is salvation through belief in Him. His disciples were troubled by his choice to talk with her, especially because they were hungry and had a different agenda.
Through this interaction Scripture says, “He stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe.” God spoke to me about how much more He can do with my life when I choose to listen to His voice. He can move when I am willing to adapt to whatever situation He puts in front of me.
BE APPROACHABLE
In Month Three in Honduras, the word that the Lord gave me was “Be approachable.” God helped me to see how irritable and bitter I was throughout each day. These feelings were the result of a combination of things: sleeping on a cot with a rod in the middle of my back, missing my family, losing access to electricity/water/Wi-Fi frequently, hand-washing my clothes, lacking alone time, and holding conflicting views of ministry with my teammates.
In the midst of my pubescent years, my mom would tell me to turn off my “Attitude with a capital A” and to stop rolling my eyes. I was reminded of those lovely times as God prodded me to check my attitude, palpable through my non-verbal cues. It’s easy to come up with excuses for my behavior, but that’s not what the Lord was calling me to.
God led me to the story in Luke 18 where Jesus blesses children. Parents brought their kids to Jesus so he could pray for them, but the disciples scold them for bothering Jesus. Jesus responds, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children.”
Classic Jesus, making His disciples look foolish. I tried to embrace this word of approachability by listening to my teammates’ and hosts’ feedback and helping with Spanish communication. Each of these words is difficult to incorporate in my life, so I would appreciate prayers to do so gracefully.
Onto the practical matters! For the last couple weeks in Honduras, we continued to teach English and put together church events. We organized events for women and for kids, which were both very successful.
Women here are often viewed as little more than property. They are frequently left to care for many kids while the men move on to other women. Therefore, our event focused on identity in Christ and receiving service. We made baked goods, washed their feet, and prayed with them. It was very powerful.
Tons of kids attended the carnival we put on, complete with crafts, piñatas, face-painting, musical chairs, and games. It was such a blast, especially to see kids be kids in a culture where they often work as vendors and baby-sitters for their family.
We were also able to participate in a few Holy Week traditions. We went swimming in multiple public pools with neighborhood kids, which is apparently the cool thing to do since they don’t have school. We attended a dinner with traditional Easter food and live music. On Good Friday, we watched a live reenactment of the Passion and saw the elaborate “rugs” made from dyed sawdust that the villagers make.
Our time in Honduras is wrapping up in the city of Siguatepeque for Leadership Development Weekend where we will reunite with our whole squad and receive training. Then, my team is off to Chile for Month Four as Unsung Heroes. Our task for the month is finding future contacts, so let me know if you have any potential connections in Northern Chile. Peace and blessings woooop!
