First of all I would like to apologize for the unwarranted blog hiatus; I don’t have any real excuse nor will I try to invent a convincing one. My apologies! To give a quick update of February highlights: we began the month with a backpack and school supply give-away at Celebración for all of the kids in the 6:8 Child Sponsorship Program, shortly after, Anton, the Hicks, and I made a 90 day renew your passport run to San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua. Celebración opened a feeding center specifically for women and children, we have hosted two teams in the new team house in Escazú and even had, at one point, three teams overlapping between the two sites. We have celebrated birthdays with friends, made new relationships, witnessed GOD’s provision as he orchestrated the means to build two families new homes, and simply experienced the joys and tragedies of living life in community with others.
Had I chosen to write a blog two weeks ago, or even two days ago, I would most likely be writing about something very different. I feel as though I am in a constant process of growth and the things that weigh on my heart are likewise continually changing. With that said, it makes it very difficult to choose what to share when I have received so many important lessons within the past month that individually impacted me a great deal. However, I would like to share what is on my heart at this moment in time, not because this particular impression is more deserving, but simply because it will be more honest and real.
The whole month of February we have focused on the topic of love. Although it began as a slightly comical cliché to do a study of love and friendship in order to celebrate the month of Valentine’s Day, I have learned so much more about the most powerful force in the universe than ever before. More than anything I think I have more of an appreciation for the unconditional love GOD has for me because of the difficulties I have encountered in loving others recently. “GOD is love” (1 John 4:8), and he knows how to love us perfectly without flaw, but we are in turn called to love others so that “GOD abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (4:12). We were specifically made with the purpose to love sacrificially and unselfishly so that GOD, who created love and is love, could dwell within us and perfect love in our loving of others. Confusing, right? But what a responsibility we have been given! We are a crucial component in the perfection of the most powerful force that impassions our universe because GOD planned it that way.
Once you get past that and begin actually trying to love others “well” is where things get really complicated, messy, and at times just ridiculously frustrating. Because it is not easy. The most difficult part is desiring to love “well” and not knowing how. The only thing that I can say is that unconditional love, love that does not expect anything, nor ask for anything in return, does not come with a manual nor does it plug neatly into a mathematical formula. But if we are loving unconditionally, GOD abides in us and will be with us in every situation, guiding us in our actions. How do you love someone well who doesn’t want your help? How do you love someone well who is constantly using you? How do you love someone well who lies to you, or betrays you, or breaks your trust? The answer is that I can’t. My flesh cannot. My flesh wants to give up and run away and protect myself from getting hurt. And I would dare to say that your flesh instinctively acts in a similar fashion. But thank goodness we have a force living inside of us that is not of the flesh; and everything that the flesh is, (envious, boastful, rude, irritable, resentful, unforgiving, selfish) love is not. Even if my heart is in the right place I want my actions to be also. My love for them remains, and it is because I love them that I long to treat them in a way that demonstrates GOD’s love. I say all of this, or better yet, I ramble on, because I am struggling with this and I need to be encouraged by the truth of John’s words. May GOD bless you all in wonderful and surprising ways each and every day,
Becca
