Thanksgiving: an expression of adoration
Life looks anything but normal while on the Race, or while studying abroad, or doing a mission trip, etc etc. I’m sure many of you can relate.
Your whole physical lifestyle has changed. You’re living around a bunch of strangers who shortly become family, you’re living in someone else’s home or on the ground, or in church bunk bed. You’re eating less than normal foods, oftentimes the same food over and over and over. You walk through the market or the city center and rarely can you find a sign written in your native language.
Right and left things are thrown at you that are anything but normal.
But somehow in the mix of things you get to a point where your reality, although very different from place to place begins to seem normal.
It’s normal that you can’t read any of the billboards, bus ticket screens, or supermarket item names.
It’s normal that you are standing in the middle of a crowded market and you have absolutely NO idea what is being talked about around you.
It’s normal that you’re living in a bed that’s not your own.
And then there’s holidays….
These are the moments that snap you back to oddity of the reality before you.
You see photos of all of your favorite people sitting around in all of the familiar places of home. They’re surrounded by all of your favorite foods.
So in honor of the abnormality that I call my life and in honor of today, THANKSGIVING (!!!) I thought I’d share some things I’m super thankful for— both in my present reality, and in the normalcy of the United States:
- I’m thankful that I got to spend an hour face timing my family around the dinner table in Texas. I’m thankful for technology, although many times I find myself cursing all that is has to offer, I can’t imagine the amount of sacrifice and the pure struggle it would be to not be able to have a glimpse of home along this journey. I’m thankful for these humans who share the same blood as me, who encourage me and cheer me on, who travel hours and hours across Texas (we all know how large it is.. hehe…) to join together to be thankful for what the Lord has given us. I’m thankful for my parents, and the amount of trust and freedom they showed me growing up. That they have allowed me to take ownership of my own life. And I’m thankful for the discipline and the structure they showed me too. I’m thankful for the crazy amount of grace they’ve walked in during my sassy teenage girl years. I’m thankful for the way my dad walks in silliness, playfulness and an insane amount of knowledge/understanding. I’m thankful for how my mother walks in so much curiosity and genuine interest for the people around her, and how much wisdom and unconditional love she gives away. I’m thankful for my brother and how he’s put up with his annoying little sister. And how invested he is in the things that he loves. I also love that I know that if I was ever in a huge bind, he would drop everything to make sure I was taken care of. He’s just a super solid guy.
- I’m thankful for my Chilean mother and father, Jeanette and Cesar, and my little brothers Alias and David. They’ve been so sweet and so selfless in opening their homes, taking us to lunch after church on Sundays, taking us to the park so we can sell Christmas bread for ministry, or just hanging out and laughing with us about anything and everything. They’ve been a joy to spend time with. We speak a lot of spanglish… Spanish and English, with a mix of Google Translate, which comes in handy more often than you know!!
- I’m thankful for the beautiful mountains that are our backyard this month. We are surrounded by the Andes Mountains and a few times a week, my teammate and I take a hike up the mountain for sunset or whenever we get home from ministry, and I just feel so loved by the Father. To be able to sit on the mountain and look at his creation, and to chat about the day and the pits and peaks He is walking me through has been my saving grace. It has been such a blessing to be able to unwind on the mountain. And the fruitful conversation that I’ve been able to have along the trek up with my teammates is one of my favorite parts of this month so far.
- And I’m so thankful that yet again the Lord is so faithful in using every single moment to reveal Himself more and more to me. I’m thankful that God is concerned with more than our circumstances, but our hearts and our souls. I’m thankful that it doesn’t matter which city in which country in whatever hemisphere I’m at in the current time, the Father is using every encounter to teach me more as long as I’m willing to let Him speak. He’s such an intricate Father who delights in the things that we do simply because He created us and He loves to spend time with His creation. It’s not about doing enough, or being enough, or striving to give enough (time, money, energy, words, etc) but it’s about simply living in communion with Him day in and day out. He just simply wants to love his children. That’s it. It’s that simple.
This is just a tiny tiny list of the things I am thankful for this year! My prayer is that this week you’ll take a moment to reflect on all of the things God has blessed you with, because He is a God who gives good gifts, sometimes we just need to reflect, and allow Him to show us the good in our lives.
Happy Thanksgiving, friends!
