Enjoying a rare delacacy here in South Asia.
Stef with some of the friends we made at a university.
Hamming it up with some friends.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
"I'm every woman...It's all in me..."
Well guess what, Chaka Khan? You're WRONG.
I've been attempting to function on my own lately, and failing miserably to depend on the Lord for the strength needed to survive in a dry and arid place like South Asia. Unsurprisingly, as a result I've hit a brick wall of exhaustion and desperate need of renewal. How quickly one can end up here, when we get this crazy mindset that we can kick and paddle like crazy to stay afloat, or control who will accept truth and who won't. How we can even know where we're going to live tomorrow or how our digestive systems will choose to function. One thing is certainly more clear to me than ever before: I'm NOT every woman, and it will certainly NEVER be all in me. And you know what? That's OK.
I was chilling alone in our kitchen last night, eating icecream out of the box with a spoon and pondering the memories of yet another crazy day here in South Asia. Somewhere between my thoughts and the sweet taste in my mouth, my eyes fell on a verse that was posted on the fridge:
"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself; the Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him. the Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." Lamentaions 3:22-26
Honestly, this was not the comfort I was expecting when I opened the freezer, but it was what I needed to hear. "Because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed..."
We leave this country in less than a week, so our few remaining days hold many goodbye's and individual's to trust to HIM.
I've been attempting to function on my own lately, and failing miserably to depend on the Lord for the strength needed to survive in a dry and arid place like South Asia. Unsurprisingly, as a result I've hit a brick wall of exhaustion and desperate need of renewal. How quickly one can end up here, when we get this crazy mindset that we can kick and paddle like crazy to stay afloat, or control who will accept truth and who won't. How we can even know where we're going to live tomorrow or how our digestive systems will choose to function. One thing is certainly more clear to me than ever before: I'm NOT every woman, and it will certainly NEVER be all in me. And you know what? That's OK.
I was chilling alone in our kitchen last night, eating icecream out of the box with a spoon and pondering the memories of yet another crazy day here in South Asia. Somewhere between my thoughts and the sweet taste in my mouth, my eyes fell on a verse that was posted on the fridge:
"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself; the Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him. the Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord." Lamentaions 3:22-26
Honestly, this was not the comfort I was expecting when I opened the freezer, but it was what I needed to hear. "Because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed..."
We leave this country in less than a week, so our few remaining days hold many goodbye's and individual's to trust to HIM.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Divine Appointments
It's funny how quickly people enter and exit your life sometimes.
The other day I was walking in a park, and met a sweet elderly widow. As we were talking, her eyes welled up with tears as she told me about the recent passing of her husband of 67 years. I made a friend for life that day, because after having chai at her house, she now kisses my cheek each time I see her and calls me "Sweetie Pie." It's so cute.
We were also introduced to her daughter, who invited us to our first Indian wedding celebration, where we danced the night away to 80's tunes and ate our first Indian meal since recovering from our first South Asia parasite (which in itself is the basic reason I've failed to blog in 3 weeks.)
Last night, we went with the daughter to a local cancer treatment center, and were able to visit with patients who were facing the last stages of their lives. I don't have the words right now to blog about this, but can only say that when looking into their eyes, I promised that I would never feel sorry for myself again, because I don't know suffering.
I feel that I'm often drained of energy here, specifically emotional energy, and find that I spend most of it taking in the poverty and suffering in the everyday scenes of life here.
The other day I was walking in a park, and met a sweet elderly widow. As we were talking, her eyes welled up with tears as she told me about the recent passing of her husband of 67 years. I made a friend for life that day, because after having chai at her house, she now kisses my cheek each time I see her and calls me "Sweetie Pie." It's so cute.
We were also introduced to her daughter, who invited us to our first Indian wedding celebration, where we danced the night away to 80's tunes and ate our first Indian meal since recovering from our first South Asia parasite (which in itself is the basic reason I've failed to blog in 3 weeks.)
Last night, we went with the daughter to a local cancer treatment center, and were able to visit with patients who were facing the last stages of their lives. I don't have the words right now to blog about this, but can only say that when looking into their eyes, I promised that I would never feel sorry for myself again, because I don't know suffering.
I feel that I'm often drained of energy here, specifically emotional energy, and find that I spend most of it taking in the poverty and suffering in the everyday scenes of life here.
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