May 3, 2014
Happy Sabbath everyone! I hope you’ve had a good week and have taken the time to thank the Lord for all of His goodness, blessings and mercy shown to you throughout the week. We serve an Amazing God!
Two beautiful examples of God's Handiwork I saw this past week. :)
It’s been sort of “business as usual” around here since my last entry. Teaching classes, running errands in town, helping in the kitchen, working around campus, counseling the kids. I must say, much less stressful than previous weeks….and full of God’s blessings. Since the last few entries focused more on the trials I’ve had, I wanted to take the time now to just share some of the good times and blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon me these past two weeks.
Clearing the place where we're about to plant an orchard.
Omar posing for a pic while working.
Armando with a wild chicken that got trapped in our tool house. :) After a couple of pics,
we let it go back in the jungle.
This past week has been a rather interesting one with the older boys (ages 11-15). I’ve definitely felt the dad in my come out. :) I had the whole “sex talk” with each of the boys individually this week. At first, I was a bit nervous, as I wasn’t sure what to expect. But it went very well. Then, more of the boys wanted to learn how to tie a tie, so we had a little course on that. I bought each of the older boys their own black tie, so they have been sporting them at worship all week. :) I also bought them each their own can of deodorant. You should have seen some of their faces! Most had never used deodorant before I found out, so we had to talk about how to use it. :) So this week was like a big “coming of age” event to them, welcoming them to “manhood”. Lol. It was a lot of fun.
Jhon and I after church on Sabbath.
Jonatan, Jancy, me and Samuel last Sabbath.
And since then, they’ve come and talked to me about different things more. One (Josue) has come and asked how he can be a missionary when he grows up! You don’t know what that did to my heart….especially because of who said it. He’s really shy and not necessarily the type you would expect to want to be a missionary. But I couldn’t be happier! He has really opened up a lot to me these past few weeks. This week alone, he has come to my room almost every night to just talk.
Wednesday night prayer meeting. I guess Daniel finished early. :)
We’re continuing the studies at the Army base. The past two have been more of a blessing than the previous two. Last Friday (April 25th), one soldier called me over to him and said, “I just wanted to thank you for coming here every week. These meetings are what I look forward to the most every week. I’m an Adventist and this is the only outlet to God and interaction with the brethren that I have. It makes such a difference to me!” That put a big smile on my face. He also told me, along with a few others, that he really wished he could attend church on Sabbaths, but that they don’t have free time until Sabbath afternoons. I told him I would talk to the Coronel to see if some sort of arrangement could be made. He thanked me, but said he didn’t think it would be possible. I told him not to lose faith. So, Sunday, when I was in town, I texted the Coronel to ask what time the soldiers had off on Sabbaths because several wanted to attend church. He responded that they are given free time after lunch. I asked him if it would be that way all year, because several have expressed an interest in attending church with us and the meetings are in the morning. After I sent it, I prayed that the Lord would open the way for them to be able to go…that He would intervene and not let Satan close this door that God has opened. As soon as I finished praying, the Coronel responded and said for me to just let him know how many soldiers wanted to attend church and he would make arrangements to let them leave early so they could attend! Amen!!
Last night was no different. We still had about 50 soldiers in attendance, with several asking for prayer, sharing testimonies and showing a sincere desire to learn more about God. They all march in with their Bibles and studies in hand, sit down and start singing. I tell you, it’s such a wonderful sight! Please continue to pray for them, as they grow in Christ.
I received a special blessing from little Rodrigo this week too. He came up to me and said, “Here, Teacher, this is for you.”, as he handed me a card he had made for me in Art class. On the front, it said, “To: Miguel From: Rodrigo” When you open it up, he put a border of stickers around all the inside. Then, on the left side, he wrote, “Thank you for taking care of me” and on the right side, “God bless you!”. He then proceeded to give me a big hug. Definitely a great moment…one where you feel like you’re right where you’re supposed to be and that you really do make a difference.
Janet at Sabbath vespers. Such a sweet little girl!
Belsabet leading out vespers. She did a GREAT job!
At vespers with the boys. (From left to right: Benjamin, Omar, Armando
Jose Carlos, me and Rodrigo)
Matthew 18:2-4 says, “And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” I thought about my buddy Rodrigo and his card and, with these verses in mind, wondered if I am like him in God’s Eyes. Am I humble and obedient? Do I recognize my dependance on God and thank him for it every day? Does He have my “thank you card” hung on “His wall” like I have Rodrigo’s? It’s so easy, at times, to get caught up in daily activities and responsibilities, especially as adults, that we forget that we must be as children…hat we must implicitly trust and depend on our Heavenly Father, just as a small child trusts and depends implicitly on his mother and father. Oriel reminded us all of that in his sermon this morning. What is my relationship with God like? Do I trust Him? I mean, do I really trust Him? Definitely worth some heartfelt thought and consideration. What about you, my friend? How is your relationship with God? Do you find yourself sitting (as a child) at the Feet of Christ, taking in every Word that proceeds from the Mouth of God? Or are you as Martha (an adult), overly concerned with what has to be done, when it has to be done and how it has to be done and trying to do it all yourself? And all the while missing out on the blessing that Christ desires to bestow upon you? May we all take time to thank God for taking care of us and ask Him for a more child-like heart, one that will trust Him more with each passing day. Amen!
God bless you all!
Maranatha!
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