As I’m sitting on top of a jeep-ney (a metal moving bus with bars on top for holding) in the middle of a typhoon, with rain soaking every piece of clothing I have on I am attempting to eat a cracker without dropping it from shaking so much and find that the feelings running through me are not the happiest. I turn and look over my shoulder to shield my face from the rain and I see my teammate with the biggest smile I have ever seen on her face, arms stretched wide and laughter pouring from her mouth. My mood was instantly checked….how can I be begrudging the situation I am in when someone sitting, literally, in the same boat as I am is on top of the world? Ariah, our group’s sunshine as I like to call her, was just as drenched and cold as I was and she chose to see the beautiful side of the situation while I chose to see the obvious negative facts. I have so much to learn; from situations such as this and people such as my teammate. What a beautiful blessing to experience such a memory; the remainder of that ride was quite enjoyable with some attitude adjustments and lots of prayer.
These past few weeks since I left home have been some of the most beautiful and also the toughest I have every experienced and we’re only a week and a half in (although it does feel like much longer than that). This time away from home has been blessed with beautiful opportunities: sharing resources I didn’t know I had to share, spending the weekend caring for and learning from street boys, seeing God work in my teammates, laughing harder than I have in months, crying harder than I have in years, riding on top of jeep- ney’s in typhoon weather, rebuilding parts of our ministry host’s camp, building a swing for children out of just an idea, building things out of bamboo (which is an AMAZING resource, just FYI) and so many other things that elude me at the moment. I have learned what it means to be raw with these people and I have shared things that I haven’t shared with anyone since I shared them with my psychologist almost 11 years ago.
There have been moments where I have missed my family, missed my friends, wanted a warm shower, and wished I could just see my baby Bob, but there have been better moments where I am overwhelmed with God’s blessings….stunned by the work he has allowed us to see, sung praises to him on a mountain top with the jungle splayed for miles out in front of me, shared the Gospel with a little boy who has not known consistent love, seen poverty at it’s extreme, been loved on by people who I have never met before, created things that mean something and been blessed by my teammates in more ways than I could have ever imagined.
I have been gone from GR for two weeks and although it feels much longer than that I am grateful for these days I have had and I cannot wait to see what God has in store for the remainder of our time away from home. I love and miss all those I am not near and I cannot wait to see all my loved ones. Know that God is working and his kingdom is flourishing. I apologize this blog is so short and does not contain too many detailed stories, but the internet is scarce here and I can only upload a few words. I will share more as soon as I have more internet and time. I love and miss you all; thank you for your support and love.
Thanks for reading.
Tabbi
