Who would you rather be: the one who eats the dinner or the one who serves the dinner? You’d rather eat and be served, right? But I’ve taken my place among you as the one who serves. Luke 22:28 (The Message)
As I type this, I am once again winging my way across the Gulf of Mexico to my other home, Guatemala. For one week, I am leaving my schizophrenic lifestyle where I compartmentalize my life. The place where one day, I will pack sacks for hungry children and that night, eat a hearty meal with enough calories to sustain a child for several days. The place where I get praised because I make a pledge not to buy anything new for a year but spend on dog food what it would take to buy food for a month for a child. The place where I have good intentions, but often get sidetracked with my privileged lifestyle. I come back to Guatemala so frequently not because I am a saint, but because I am a sinner and so quickly forget my purpose in life is not to be a receiver, but to be a giver. Returning to Guatemala helps me to keep the image of the children and the nannies fresh in my mind. Fresher than desire for a sleek kayak I will use a few times a year or the need for a new refrigerator I will use daily. Returning to Guatemala is more for me than for the people of this country who are servants at heart. Because I have a short memory unless I am remembering a slight someone committed against me years ago. I go because I must. But, I don’t want to be admired because I do not deserve recognition. The ones who deserve that are the ones who serve seven days a week fifty two weeks a year. We have more than fifty people on this team, but with a record 102 children at the Malnutrition Center, every pair of hands will be kept busy. People come for a variety of reasons. They have been before and return to the place where they left a little piece of their heart. Or a big piece in some cases! They have heard someone else speak passionately about the children and the nannies, the country and the needs. Or they heard the Holy Spirit whispering in their ear to go, to see, to take that leap of faith and do something out of the ordinary. We come from more than six different churches from around the country, but we will have so much in common by the end of the week. Memories shared, hearts broken, friends who do not speak the same language as we do, new children that are “ours”. One of my favorite things about going on a mission trip is watching the team come together as one. A group of strangers who will be brothers and sisters by the end of the week. If you are longing for something different, if you are seeking God’s face, it is time to sign up for your own mission week. Come join us in serving Christ with Orphan’s Heart and find that it is you who will be changed.
Cathy, I love reading about your adventures in Guatemala. Is the Malnutrition Center the one that is run by Florida Baptist Childrens Homes?