First Impressions

It may be accented by the fact that it's a Sunday but the pace in Ecuador today was nice and slow.  Several times Jamie caught me wanting to move faster than we needed to, or even wanted to.  I found it difficult to relax sitting on a bench or stopping to watch children play and interact.  The speed of life is slow...and I like that. It's good to remind ourselves that we can slow down; we don't have to rush to the next thing.

Jamie and I are here to get to know the culture, learn the language, and follow Jesus.  We’ll see what that looks like the longer we’re here, but for now, we are wait. Psalm 33:20-22:

           

            We wait in hope for the LORD;

            he is our help and our shield.

            In him our hears rejoice,

for we trust in his holy name.

           

            May your unfailing love be with us, LORD,

            even as we put our hope in you.

Nomads

I suppose the journey always continues, and such is the case for Jamie and I as we let the world know that we are moving away.

We have mixed emotions about this kind of move.  On one hand, we are VERY excited about what the Lord will do through us, but on the other hand, we are saddened by the loss we have felt and will continue to feel when leaving the ones we love.

It reminds me of the call of Abram in Genesis 12.  He left his homeland, his job, his friends - everything - to follow G-D's call.  I feel that maybe G-D has laid this upon us for a season.  Jamie and I are nomads - sojourners on this earth.  The beauty and difficulty of this kind of life is that we have homes in many places, and we have homes in none.  We are caught in this desire to follow Jesus no matter where He leads, but we struggle (or I should say that I struggle) with wanting to "settle down."  It's not a life I would necessarily choose - going from one place to another, moving from one house to another - but G-D has called us forward.  He is moving us beyond our comforts, beyond our expectations, beyond our ability to see, and He asks us to trust Him.

Buckle up blog readers.  The journey continues...in Ecuador!