Dear Friends in Christ -
I occurred to me today that - WOW - I'm leaving for Ecuador in 7 short days. Sometimes big things like this sneak up on me because I'm not prone to enough anxiety to jar me into grasping the reality that SOMETHING BIG IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN.
But, something big IS about to happen. Seven people from three different churches in our deanery are praying daily, trying to learn a few more words of Spanish, gathering essentials like insect repellant, cameras and hats, and getting ready to pack.
The volume of emails that have been flying back and forth signal that people in Ecuador are working hard to prepare for our arrival. The sweet fragrance of their generous hospitality is gently wafting through the e-waves.
How can I best prepare for this experience? Notice what's here. I need to really see and hear and taste and smell and touch HERE so that when I get THERE and go about seeing and hearing and tasting and smelling and touching I can make some connections and be a bridge-builder. Between cultures. Between peoples. Between 'you' and 'me.'
"Blessed are the peacemakers." That's what the Bible says. So how exactly to we MAKE peace?! Well studies show that we treat people we know better than people we don't know, so it seems that making connections is the first step in making peace.
Now, you might be thinking: 'Why is she talking about peace? We're not at war with Ecuador." Indeed, we're not at war with Ecuador. But I submit to you that there's a lot more to making peace than not being at war. Real PEACE has to do with living in harmony with each other, with living in a state of freedom that allows appreciation of differences and creative energies to flow.
Please pray that as our ministry team members do the outside preparation - packing our bags, finding our passports, etc. - that God helps us with the inside, heart preparation May God make us peacemakers that we may be known as children of God.
Faithfully,
Janet+
No comments:
Post a Comment