Skip to main content

Melting away

It is hot. And, hot all of the time. There is no central air-conditioning here to allow a break. But, that's okay. So, you sweat all night and sleep above your covers, but that's ok. It is hot.
You can literally feel your body melting away as you sweat at night, but it felt to me that my sin was melting away as well. Less than twenty-four hours in Haiti and I can already feel my self-absorption disappearing. Freed from anything close to my normal comfort zone, I have become totally dependent on God. My prayers are continuous and I feel the presence of the Spirit.
The people seem somehow larger here. Without the media onslaught and consumerist cultural barrage, the people on the journey with me and those who speak with the muted sounds of Creole French seem larger. As I melt away and give myself for others. God seems larger. The smiles and joy seem happier. We are all sweating, we are all tired, and we are all way beyond our comfort zones. But, that is why we came.
I can't wait to meet the children in Carrefour and the workers there.
It is hot, but that's okay.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Reading the Bible in Community

For people who are unfamiliar with the Bible, studying Holy Scripture can seem an intimidating experience.   There are so many things about the people, places, and situations described in the Bible that it can seem as though one has to be an expert in biblical studies to be able to grow through Bible study.   This is not so.   Let me encourage you in your study of Holy Scripture.  If you seek to learn about God through the study of scripture, God will meet you in that endeavor.  No matter how brilliant or simple you consider yourself, studying the word of God will vitally shape your daily walk in faith.  The word of God is accessible to you, at any level of reading comprehension, historical understanding, etc..  Because, when we read Holy Scripture, we do not read it alone.  As Christians, when we read the Bible we ask God to allow the Holy Spirit to inspire our reading so that the words from the text become real in our current lives and life situ...

Walking where Jesus walks...

This morning as I wait to travel to Israel, I'm incredibly excited about being able to walk where Jesus walked.  I have been asked to lead a devotional for my group at the Mount of Beatitudes, the place where Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount (read Matthew 5-8).  Every time I begin reading to prepare I become overwhelmed by the beauty and authority of Jesus' sermon.  To think of delivering a message in that spot where Jesus taught and spoke seems overwhelming.  But then, I remember that isn't that what we as Christians are called to do in every way, every day?  We walk where Jesus would walk.  We speak what Jesus would speak. In a world full of hurt and broken lives we are called to walk and speak int the situations that Jesus calls us through our baptism to care about.  As I journey on this pilgrimage, my prayer is that God will continue to lead me and challenge me to grow in my awareness of God.

Grace lessons from the sidelines...

The game had gone horribly wrong.  For that matter, the whole season had been a struggle.  My nine year old daughter Kate’s soccer team were woefully bad.  They were so consistently out played by their opponents that the other teams would try to change up their formations and pass the ball so as to not run up the score (at least the classy ones would).  Her coaches were nice people doing the best they could and I appreciated their dedication to my daughter and our team, but they were not really soccer people.  Losing a soccer game is not the end of the world, but consistently watching girls you care about be beaten ten plus to zero because on goal kicks your team kicks the ball to the center and not the outside is heart wrenching to someone who is a soccer person. However, losing was not the most difficult thing.  Watching Kate become demoralized was the worst part.  In our family, we have a rule that you try and give your best... always.  It is o...