We have been in afghanistan for over a month and are spending about one more month here. the time passes by s l o w l y. there is a peace and a confidence in knowing that you are walking in obedience to the Father...even if that walk exists as a trek through the deserts of a war-torn land. admittedly, the conditions of this place are weighing heavy on my heart. i am feeling tired and weak. i take courage in the fact that i never walk alone. i am at the place where i can truly submit my restless heart to my Father, pray THY WILL BE DONE and REALLY mean it. these words have been my bread; "...more than that we {REJOICE in our sufferings}, knowing that suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character and character produces hope and hope does not put us to shame because God's love has been poured out in our hearts..."
romans 5:3-5
I have had to ask myself some LOADED questions over the past few weeks. it is easy to agree with “being content in every situation”, but to actually live that out with your chin up and a smile on your face is a different story. To literally be “patient in tribulation and constant in prayer”. I am so grateful for the strength in the eyes of my husband , the awesome community I am surrounded by and the support and prayers of my friends and family in the west.
Despite the raised eyebrows we received from some regarding starting our married life in
A-stan, I can tell you that this has undoubtedly been an awesome experience for us as a couple. We are living out the vows that we made to each other and experiencing a grace that covers us like the chuppah we were married underneath.
We are continuing the classes that we teach at the NGO {English, conversation, art, drama, religion} and will be spending the next few weeks running an education seminar for teachers and working with students in a small village outside of Mazar. We will also be doing some food distribution to victims of the famine this week. It is easy to get discouraged here as the fruit of our labor is not always evident. But I KNOW that our work is not in vain. As i extend my hands to the poor, as i kneel low to look in the eyes of the orphan, as i photograph the woman who has never felt valued, there is something INSIDE of ME that happens. Some thing in my very core breaks and tha
n sparks to life. The small acts of ruthless grace and redemptive love, the practical declarations of peace that come with simply choosing to live amongst the afghan people are what make it all worth it. And so we walk on…
*[Jesus] worked miracles not to shock and awe or to feed his own mouth but to feed the masses. So, we might not be able to turn water into wine, but if we can help the two billion people who are dying of thirst find water, that is a miracle.
*excerpt from {Jesus for President} Claiborne & Haw
