I hope you are all reading some other people’s blogs, to get a good idea of what is going on here. We are at a church in Palenque. The A team is spread out in the villages in the mountains. Where I would rather be if I were alone, but our set up is good, with a wife and four other women I am supposed to lead. I have quickly begun to understand God’s reasoning for having only one wife. I always thought that it would be easy to have a handful of wives. That is my selfishness, because with a bunch of wives, I would spend time only with the wife that was in a good mood. It would be easy to avoid intimate issues (emotionally), because I could satisfy my needs (stroking of my ego) without working too hard. If a man is truly trying to lay down his life for his wife, truly trying to love her as Christ loves the church, one wife is more than any man could ever handle. I am so used to hanging out with men, football players, truck drivers, movers, real men. Men who don’t cry or show much emotion. Men who know when it is time to go get a beer (any time any friend is trying to deal with any issue). So working through issues with this many women, I would rather have diarrhea any day. So praise God, he is making me a better man.
The B team set up tents in the grass at the church. About half of us have decided to sleep on the floor of the church. The floor is concrete, with bars over the space where a window would go, and a tin roof. The first night it rained and scared me awake. This was a different sound than dogs fighting, turkeys gobbling, neighbors partying, horns honking and roosters crowing. All those noises we are getting used to.
Last night we were going knocking on doors to invite people to a cell church in another area of town, when we found out we needed someone to drive a ‘truck’. These trucks are little rear wheel drive five speed nissans, with a cage in the bed. People load up in there, 20 or so people can fit, and I have even seen these trucks with 4 head of beef cattle in them, out for their final ride. So I said I could drive, finally I can use a talent other than making faces and fart noises, and I was off driving the crazy streets of mexico. These streets are full of potholes, children, and dogs. People don’t like to use their blinkers, and don’t seem to care what side of the road they are on. So with my spanish only navigator we were off. He asked if I liked the music, I said “si, me gusto”. I believe that was correct. I got laughed at when I told someone I was born in Bolivia, and then found out I had said “I gave birth in Bolivia”. Oh well, a laugh is good in any language. So, I asked the boy who was directing me what the name of the band on the radio was, and he said “No Tit-lay”, as he pointed to the stereo, which announced “no title”. This boy directed me down a street which had a 20 drop on one side and weeds as high as the windows blocking my mirrors, then he finally told me the only way out was to reverse. I couldn’t see, it was 9 pm, and my tires were not grabbing the dirt. So after a few running starts, he had me drive through someone’s backyard. The family was eating and hanging out and waved as I drove by. I love this place.
The cell group we went to last night was held standing in someone’s front yard. We showed up and prayed for the sick babies, Chad preached, three came to Christ, and then I broke the day’s fast with a bologna and cheese sandwich. It was the best sandwich I had ever eaten. Really. So tonight, I will drive the truck back to that village and pick up all those people to bring them to the service which we are leading. We will now go and knock on doors and invite the neighborhood to church.
This morning, we had a group discussion about a situation that happened yesterday. A boy came up begging as we were drinking coffee, and from that we have had a lot of emotion about listening and hearing God’s voice. About what is proper in how we respond. Can we give too much? Does providing for these kids enable them? Weaken them? Cause a dependence on us as rich white folk? Hmmm….. I guess all I can say, is I want to out-give God. I want to know if Jesus came back tonight, he wouldn’t find me without my oil, or asleep. What does that look like? I am not sure, but we are learning.
We also went back to the Perez’s house. Angel Perez is the furniture maker who was blogged about by Stephanie and Tana. We bought a chair and gave it to Eleazar, who leads Shekinah. Shekinah is the place where all the world racers stayed for the first week. We also invited him to church tonight, and are planning on going into the jungle with him when he gathers his wood and vines. Monday is our day off, and the guys are going to bond with a trip into the forest, carrying machetes!
I believe our God is a God of process. There are some things which only time can bring about. However, I believe we have a choice in this process, to allow God, to give God permission to stretch us, to break us, to mold us. We need to be willing to make decisions and put ourselves in a place where God can do what He wants to do in our lives. I believe that where I am now is just that place. We are being changed, it is like the fast track on Cranium. Every few turns in life, we have another opportunity to get on God’s fast track. It is an incredible place to be, and I hope that our experience and these blogs will cause more people to take big chances, and dare God to prove his own word.
(This blog was also written last week, just like Linnea´s Spit the Devil out blog… lots have happened in these last couple of weeks)
