Today's entry won't be about the hospital or my Spanish class. Today I'm going to share with you what I have discovered about myself after being here for one week.
As I was preparing to come to Ecuador, I wondered why God wanted me to take this trip. Its not a mission trip and I'm alone, so why would he want me to be here in South America for 3 weeks? I don't know the complete answer to this question yet, but throughout this week God has shown me in his Word and in my circumstances somethings about who I am and who he wants me to be.
Some weeks before I left I remember thinking that I want to be a teacher one day. But there was a conflict for me. Although I want to be a teacher I didn't know what I was passionate enough about to teach. I wasn't even looking for an answer to this question, but as I shadowed in the hospital this week I got an answer. Observing a psychiatrist showed me that I am passionate enough about healing peoples hearts and minds, to teach other people to do the same. Also, as I listened to the doctors at the General Hospital in Riobamba share their ideas about how they can be a better hospital I realized that I care a lot about health care systems. Maybe one day I can teach hospitals around the world how to structure their program to maximize the healthcare of their patients. I also think I love the word of God and worshiping him with music so much, that I would also love to teach others to discover Him in both. As I thought about these things, I also thought that an excellent teacher must first be an excellent student. I don't think that there's a really clear line of when we leave the student season of our lives and enter the teaching season, because in different areas of life we are at different stages of development. My prayer is that God will give me the wisdom to understand the seasons of my life and show me when to be the student and when to be the teacher.
Another thing I learned about myself this week came from my study of 1 Kings in the Old Testament. In first Kings starting in chapter 12, God's people turned away from him to worship idol gods. It was like the kings of Israel and Judah refused to follow God, because they wanted to preserve their own will. In the midst of all of this disobedience God sent prophets to his people, to share with them the word of the Lord. Prophets like Elijah were sent to the people who would not follow God, and as a result the people did not like him very much. When I read this I realized the I, and many other people, have been called to be a prophetic voice to this world that refuses to follow God because they are afraid to give up their own will. What this means for my life, I don't know. But I do think that I have made this far to complicated for far too long. I know and have known for a long time what God wants to say to this world. He wants the world to know that he loves each and every person with extreme passion. He wants the world to know that although many people will tell you differently, there is only one way to truly know him. He wants the world to know that if they will love light instead of darkness that they will find true life in him.
Last night I watched Facing the Giants on You Tube. Seeing this movie at this exact time in my life was what I really needed. In this movie revival comes to a high school where the students were apathetic and obviously not engaged in their work, not submissive to their parents, and had defeated attitudes on the football team. Halfway through the movie and after many many struggles revival comes to the school. Revival means that there was new life. The students gave their hearts to Jesus, and as a result everything in their lives changed because their apathy was exchanged for determination to glorify God. In the movie we also see a man, whose name I can't even remember, praying for the students in the hallway of the school. I think he prayed for revival at that school for years before it came. If there is anything I learned from this movie, its that I will pray. I will pray and I will not stop praying for my school. I don't know if I will see revival in during my time at BU, but I will not stopping sowing the seeds of prayer until it comes and people turn their hearts from apathy, pluralism, idol gods, sin and anything else that is keeping them from God and turn their hearts to the God who loves him. I believe God will do mighty things through Boston University. It will be a school that touches the world with the hand of God and brings healing to many many people.
Yes, I could have made these discoveries in Boston or at home or anywhere else. But being in Ecuador has been kind of like a retreat for me. Away from the noise, to hear the voice of God. I can't wait to see what else he has to share with me while I'm here!
Hasta Luego!
Bless God, E! You and I are a lot alike in that I also know that my calling is teaching. It is so amazing that God is still revealing to us who and what we should be teaching. We just have to remain open because we never know what means He will use to share with us. This world that we live in is definitely akin to the Israelites who were blinded by their own wills and lusts and it is up to us to continue sharing the way to salvation. And Facing the Giants is definitely one of the most inspiring movies I've ever seen. Since the first time I saw a few years back, it has testified to me that even when things sometimes appear to be getting worse, they will get better. And when they get better, God will blow your mind! Revival is certainly on the way! Can't wait to see the rest of the pics and read about the rest of your "adventures". Much Luv!
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