Learning in the Dark

Last week, while we were having power outages, I actually learned a valuable lesson from God. When our power goes off, it may be off for minutes, hours or even days. When the power is out, the fans go off (remember, we are in the tropics, it gets pretty warm, read: HOT!) the water pumps quit working, which means the water stops flowing and you just wait, in the dark if it's at night. If you are lucky enough to have lanterns for the night, you can read, but sleeping on a hot, still night can be miserable, if you sleep at all. Water must be taken from outside spigots and hauled upstairs in buckets, for baths, washing dishes, and flushing toilets.

In the midst of these outages last week, I got to thinking about our life and ministry here in Honduras (read: I was having a pity party!). My wife and I have the ability to live and work in any of three different, affluent countries. We have good educations and finding great jobs would not be a problem. As you lay sweating at night and while you pour water over your head to bath and when you don't flush your toilets until you have to, you can think about, "Why am I here, I could be anywhere else if I wanted to?" Then it dawned on me, God knows that I could be anywhere else also and He knows that I choose to be here, following His will for my life.

In reality, I only have the ability and opportunity to be somewhere else if I wanted and now, to be here doing what we do, because of God's blessing in my life. I could very well have been born in Honduras and be struggling just like the people we serve.

So, the next time the lights go out, the water quits running and fans stop, I will strive to only praise God that these are passing inconveniences and that this could have been my whole life instead of just a part of it! And also to remember, that God is well aware of my situation and no doubt, He will have a continuous flow of water and plenty of lights (and AC!) in my new home with Him!

Pablito