Faith like a mustard seed

The photocopier at the school is unreliable at best. It's been known to jam 4 times when running 3 copies. For several days running I couldn't get it to work at all. So, the other day when someone asked me to run a copy, I said, "pray for a miracle". And then, I did pray, set the paper on the glass, and hit the button. And out came the copy! I was happy, handed it off to the teacher, and went back to working at my desk. Where I realized that I needed to run copies of something for the first grade class. As I set the paper down in the copier again, I found myself praying something along the lines of, "Well God, I know you already gave me one miracle copy, but I could really use another 6. I know it's a lot to ask, but, if you could . . ." As I looked up at the sky I realized what a ridiculous prayer that was. Here I was, talking to the God of the universe, the creator of everything I see, who has power to raise from the dead, and I was thinking that 6 copies was a lot to ask for. How big is my faith really, if I can doubt God's ability to intervene with an ornery copy machine?

God's grace is definitely greater than my faith. My 6 copies printed without a problem. All day long, I'd pray before hitting the button, and out would come my copies, just as if it were a normal copier that worked.

On Thursday, I squeezed what was close to the last of my hand cream out of the bottle before heading in to Luz y Vida. As I thought to myself that hand cream isn't something I really want to spend the money on right now, I said to God, "it would be nice if someone gave me some. But, seeing as it isn't my birthday and there isn't any other special occasion, I guess it isn't all that likely . . "

A few hours later in Luz y Vida, I met Rebecca who used to work here and came back for a visit. She reached into her bag. "A friend of mine from church wanted to give gifts to all the missionaries I could think of. Here, this is for you". Can you guess what one of the things she handed me was?

Each morning as I put on my hand cream, it reminds me- God sees us. He hears us. He cares about the little things. Even when we don't see the answers, when what we ask for seems too big or out of the ordinary, or just not important enough to bother God about, God is more than able to answer in ways that surprise us.

Seeing God work in the little things reminds me he is in control of the big things too. If he cares enough about me to continue to supply me with English novels, to send me hand cream the day I ask for it, to make an "impossible" copier function, than surely he cares about the more pressing things on my mind. And if he cares, he will act. Not on my timeline. But he hears me. He sees me. I am loved and I am not forgotten.

Rainbow over Monserrate

Witness to the Wonder

Birds flit- crimson red, bright yellow. A humming bird hovers at the edge of my vision. Something wobbles past, wings blurred in flight, too small to be a bird, I think, but the flight pattern strikes me as very un-insect like.

I drink the colors.

White clouds backed by blue sky.

Russet red showing against a green tree.

And I'm a silent witness to the wonder of it all. God's creation in its stunning variety.

What does it say about God, this lavishness, the startling colors, every beautifully contoured hill that takes my breath away, the thousands of species still being discovered? Could God not have made a perfectly functional universe devoid of beauty, of color, of exuberance? Do we need the excess of the milky way galaxy and everything beyond- millions of stars and only one small life bearing planet?

It wasn't necessary, not for us. But that's the way God created. He chose color, life, beauty. Beetles and frogs, flowers and clouds, finger prints and snow flakes, all reflecting Him. Beauty. Creativity. Uniqueness. Delight.
He made it, and then he calls us. Whispers to us, enchants us, allures us, shouts with joy. An invitation to know him, a God more beautiful, more desirable, more enticing, more mysterious, more complicated than his creation. A God that offers abundance, joy, freedom, love, life.

Stop a moment and witness the wonder. What does God whisper to you?

Sex Ed 101

Today, I'm sitting around with the first graders, watching them put their number tiles in order, and not paying too close attention to the chatter all around me. Something though, jumps out at me, "and then they took their pants off in the tree and they were making love". The rest of my math lesson plan was abandoned as I tried to figure out exactly what had happened and how to deal with it.

We talked about how there are certain body parts we don't show to anyone, nor do we ask anyone to show them to us. I told them that if anyone tries to touch or look at those body parts, or they see any children doing that, then they need to tell a teacher right away. We talked about how there are some things kids can do by themselves (like playing and coloring), some things they need a grown up to help with (crossing the road and cooking) and some things they can't do at all (driving a car and well, making love) and how those limits are there to keep them safe.

That was not a lesson I had planned on teaching today. I'm still trying to figure out how to teach VERY sexually aware first graders what is and isn't appropriate behavior in a way that is age appropriate, but acknowledges they know way more than I did at their age. Any suggestions?

Progress!

Two weeks ago on Monday, Abi was home and there was a knock on the door. It was the man from ETB, our internet provider. "FINALLY!" he said. Apparently he'd been trying to get into our house and check our internet the last 7 times I called. Which is ironic because each of those 7 times I told the person on the phone, "isn't it time to do an internal revision? They've already done (5, 6, 7) external revisions and nothing changes." And the person on the phone would tell me, "no, it's an external revision. No one needs to be at home". But, finally, after 2 and a half months of having internet an average of once in every 3 days, our internet has worked every single day since the internet guy was here.

When Sara and I bought paint we couldn't decide on a color, so the hall never got painted. We did decide what color we wanted one day while out together, but didn't get around to buying it. The unfinished hall was starting to drive me crazy, so I spent a week after work and 2 weekends painting. It looks so much better now.

Friday, Stephen and I went dryer shopping. Saturday, they delivered the dryer. And yesterday, the gas man came, spent two and a half hours drilling and installing a new gas hookup and hooking up our dryer. And now we have a dryer!

We're getting closer and closer to finishing off our Torre Fuerte to-do list. Though, even as I type that I realize there are still dozens of things we'd like to do. But, it is becoming more home like and comfortable week by week.