Last night I had my weekly meeting with Pastor Gil. We never got to our intended lesson plan. We ended up sharing about our trips to Haiti. He traveled to Haiti with the Foursquare GO Team in December and stayed in Port A Prince at the Foursquare Mission. He traveled on a “tap tap”, which was the means of transportation for his team. He shared how crowded the the tap tap’s were and how very uncomfortable they were to travel long distances on. He shared about the living quarters in which they slept and how they are located near the UN compound in Port A Prince. Our conversation amplified something that was on my heart all last week.. as we came home to a villa each day from our designated work groups to a pool. Comfortable beds to sleep on. Working bathrooms with cold showers to wash away the filth from the days labor and wonderfully prepared meals… where we didn’t even have to do the dishes (in Mexico each team is required to clean all the dishes after each meal). Think of a wall with barbed wire on top of it. On one side there is a road that is filled with debris, mounds of smoldering trash, murky water that just sits there and on the other side are beautifully manicured plants, a large swimming pool, a basketball court and quiet, restful accommodations. Surely I felt stretched last week. No doubt about it. But did I truly leave my comfort zone? I absolutely enjoyed my roommates. Loved learning as much as I could about their walk with God, as much as they were willing to share anyway. But we were in a safe environment where all we had to worry about was the sound of someone snoring (me included) and the barking dogs next door. We even had sheets and pillows on our beds. It felt strange to me, a bed with sheets?.. I slept the entire week on top of the covers with my own blanket which I pack for every trip. Well… anyway that is some of what I’m processing in my mind… one other thing to note.. of all the trips I’ve taken this is just my second trip where I haven’t had to lead the team, where I was just an active participant. It was an adjustment for me, I had to force myself away from saying/doing some things I would normally do and then other things I just couldn’t help myself. It was kinda interesting how I became the keeper of the team list… and how much I struggled with one name all week long. Somewhere there is learning in all of this.. I’m just waiting on God for clarification.
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