This month my team and I are in Cuenca, Ecuador. We are working with Kingdom Life Ministry. We’ll be doing a variety of things including kids clubs, young adult outreach, and helping with an event called “a night to shine.” A night to shine is an event for special needs kids to get dressed up and be part of a formal event. Our hosts here in Ecuador are incredible. We are being hosted by an American missionary couple from New Jersey, Bobby and Laurie.
This past week our hosts have been introducing us to life in Cuenca and easing us into their ministry. At the beginning of the week they invited us to their home to have lunch, do laundry, watch tv, and just relax. They are the kind of people that say “make yourself at home” and they really mean it. My teammates and I watched Netflix and baked cookies. It felt incredible just to feel at home and do “normal” things. We stayed at their house all day. I began to feel very lazy. I felt guilty for relaxing. I prayed and told the Lord I was sorry for not doing more with my afternoon.
I felt like He said “just enjoy it.” Then I felt like He told told me that He is giving me back part of my childhood. I had good parents. They gave me everything I needed, and by most standards I had a privileged upbringing. However, my dad’s chronic illness accelerated my childhood. I feel like the Lord is restoring pieces of my childhood to me.
The next morning I was praying and thanking Him for a great day of normalcy and Netflix. He led me to Psalm 103 which says that God “satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” God is renewing my youth.
God has used the World Race to change my life. It’s not the exotic places I’ve been to or the incredible cultures I’ve experienced. That’s the icing on the cake. God has used this trip to get my attention, take me out of my normal life, and bring renewal to my soul. You don’t need to go on the World Race to expierience this renewal. You just need to trust Jesus. What I am doing is no more spectacular than sitting at a desk, or caring for precious children. It’s the Lord that has done the spectacular through this trip. Thank you for being part of this journey. I love you.
