All for His Glory

Praying for our Children

After our Holy Week vacation, before starting the next unit, the teachers of HOREB met together for some Bible study and self-evaluation. We talked about David's prayer at the end of his life in 1 Chronicles 29:10-19. At the end we rested on verse 19:

Grant to Solomon my son a whole heart that he may keep your commandments, your testimonies, and your statutes, performing all, and that he may build the palace for which I have made provision.

Our director, Enma, told us to replace Solomon's name with one of our students that was on our heart. We wrote out the verse with that child's name. Wow, what a powerful prayer. Imagine if we prayed this prayer for all of our children.

Going Deeper

Spring is here. We have turned the calendar to April and I feel like I have begun anew. I spent my Semana Santa without internet. I spent much time studying the Bible and praying, and I did a lot of walking. At times I felt very bored but I ended the week with a renewed energy and a new direction. I knew I was not simply here to teach English.

My week of reflection started out with an invitation to accompany one of the teachers and her two children on a visit with her mom. I was honored by the invitation. Her two children have become quite taken with me and whenever we walk, each slips their hand into mine. We walked down a big hill into the valley where her mom lives. During our visit the teacher recounted her story to me. Her father was killed when she was only four years old, but she remembers her father and remembers the day he was taken from her. He was a pastor of a big church in the area. It was during the Guatemala civil war and pastors, who did not take a side in the war, were seen as a threat by both the army and the guerillas. Being able to talk more with her on a deeper level was a true blessing and a great start to my week.

The week ended with another blessing. On Easter Sunday, I left the house to go for a walk. First I went to visit with Marvin, one of the teachers who had broken his leg, but he was not in his house. Another teacher, Matias, lived close by, but he also wasn't home. I decided to walk down the hill where one of families of Colegio HOREB lived. I didn't really have a plan. I have a special place in my heart for that family and I wanted to pay them a visit. I had met with them only once before and it was outside the house. I walked over and saw some of the children that I teach and started practicing with them in English and asking how their week was. They have four children that currently attend the school and one that has graduated from the school. They also have three more that are not old enough to attend. So all together, there are eight children. Their parents came out and invited me in to their home.

Inside there were two beds where the family slept. It was their bedroom and their living room. Miguel, the father, began to tell about himself. He labors in the fields but doesn't have his own land. He can't afford a home for his family and so they rent that tiny room from his mother in law. He went to the United States to be able to provide for his family but was deported back after a week. He would go again if he had the money to do so. I tell him that the family may need money but they need him more.

Their family is beautiful. I teach four of their children and they are all a little shy, but give the teachers respect and do well at school. I look around at his children and look back at him. In Luke 6:43 it says:

For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit.

I know that him and his wife are good trees and follow God, because I have seen and gotten to know their children. I see a family with a strong faith, a family who God has blessed abundantly, despite their material poverty. I think of Psalm 127:3-5

Behold children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!

Miguel obviously spends a lot of time worrying about providing for his family as anybody in his position would be. I look around at his children one more time and share with him that I think he is a very rich man. One of my favorite verses pops into my head and I ask if they have a Bible. Several of their children pull out Bibles and I smile. I have their eldest read a verse for the family. Matthew 6: 25-34

Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? Any why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

The whole family, all 10 of them, gathers together and we pray for God to provide work. Miguel thanks me for my spiritual support. I am puzzled at this because I never intended to give spiritual support when I arrived. I was just sort of bored and felt like I wanted to visit with this family because I love teaching those children. But God used that time and God gave me words. I think sometimes my plans and agendas for situations get in the way of God using me. I think I need to show up more and just let God use me whatever way He intends.

The meeting with that family fired me up. I realized that God wants to use me in a much deeper way than I would ever plan for myself. I am hoping to spend more time just showing up without agenda and seeing what God has for me.

One Thousand Times

The City lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal (Revelation 21:16).

John is describing the New Jerusalem that will come down from heaven after Satan is defeated. One stadion is about 607 feet. So 12,000 Stadia comes out to about 1,380 miles long and wide. That is one big city. That New Jerusalem will be bigger than the state of Alaska. What gets me though is that John is saying it is 1,380 miles HIGH as well. Wait, what? Exactly. To get perspective, Mount Everest is just under 6 miles high. Something that is 1,380 miles high is in outer space. So what does this tell us? That the new earth is going to be much, much bigger.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. (Revelation 21:1)

How big will the new earth be? The Bible never tells us directly, but it does give us some hints. A city that is 1,380 miles high is one hint. Another lies at the very end of Ezekiel. While in exile, God gives Ezekiel a vision of the new temple and the new city that should be constructed when they return.

These shall be the exits of the city: On the north side, which is to be 4,500 cubits by measure, three gates, the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi, the gates of the city being named after the tribes of Israel. On the east side, which is to be 4,500 cubits, three gates, the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. On the south side, which is to be 4,500 cubits by measure, three gates, the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, and the gate of Zebulun. On the west side, which is to be 4,500 cubits, three gates, the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, and the gate of Naphtali. The circumference of the city shall be 18,000 cubits. And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord is There. (Ezekiel 48:30-35)

So how does this help us determine the size of the new earth? Bear with me, check out what John has to say about the New Jerusalem:

It had a great high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed – on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

The New Jerusalem has the same design as the city in Ezekiel’s vision, only on a much grander scale, with some very important changes. One is that the names of the twelve apostles will be on the foundations of the city. Another is that the Lord is in the city and gives light to the city. In Ezekiel’s vision, the Temple is in the Holy district, which is a part from the city. But in the New Jerusalem, God´s glory will dwell in the city and there will be no temple. It will also be made out of pure gold, which is a lot of gold for a city that is bigger than Alaska.

Ezekiel’s new city is 4,500 cubits long and wide. A cubit is 1.5 feet. So the city in his vision was about 6,750 feet or around 1.3 miles long and wide. The New Jerusalem then is roughly 1,000 times bigger than the city in Ezekiel’s vision. That got me thinking that maybe, just maybe, the new earth will also be 1,000 times as big. Maybe this Earth is like a miniature model of what is to come that is 1/1000^th the size. A 1,380 mile high city in our miniature model Earth would be 6,750 feet, a breathable elevation.

It is important the New Jerusalem is 1,380 miles high, because it will provide light for the entire Earth. There will be no sun and no night. The light will emanate out from the New Jerusalem.

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. (Matthew 5:14)

As somebody that loves to walk and hike, I wonder what the trek will be like up to the New Jerusalem. Climbing up 4,000 feet is a hard day of hiking but going UP 1,380 miles will be something else. But we will have our heavenly bodies. God will provide in every way. There will be no danger. Time will be nonexistent. There will just joy and peace as we walk. I imagine the view is incredible, maybe 1000 times more incredible than I have ever seen before. J

The Gift

A short term group from El Salvador came recently to give classes for teachers and pastors in the region. I was able to sit in with the teachers for most of the day this past Friday and Saturday. Teachers from Chajul, Nebaj, Cotzal were able to take part. One class especially spoke to me and the other teachers as well. Many of their eyes filled with tears.

The teacher of the class was an older woman named Tita. She had obviously been a teacher for many years because she took command of the room from the start. She insisted that the desks be put in a circle with nobody sitting behind another. She wanted our full attention. It was Saturday morning and the group was much smaller and intimate than it was the previous day.

She described the different temperaments and personalities of people and how it is important to know all the students that you teach. We then took a test to discover what our predominant temperaments were.
She then used some of us as examples, describing the differences. She used me as an example and described me so perfectly I got goosebumps. She talked about her two daughters, how one was more calm and quiet while the other was more energetic and talkative, and how she accepted each one the way they were, even if sometimes they drove her crazy.

She had us look at Psalm 139:13-14

For you formed my inward parts, you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

She emphasized to us that there is nobody like us in the entire world. We are all different and we are all special. She wanted us to be the best versions of ourselves and not put on different masks to be who others wanted us to be. We are an idea of God and it is impossible that an idea of God is not a good idea. She told us to thank God today for being created exactly as we are and for transforming us day by day to the person that He wants us to be. For Him, each one of us is incomparable.

She told us she had a gift for us. She brought out a box with a bow on it. She had one of the women come and look at the gift without showing anybody else what it was. She asked if she liked the gift that God gave her this day. And she said yes. Tita asked her to think about the gift. She brought another person in front of the class and had them look at the gift. One by one all the teachers were shown what was in the box and were told to think in the gift. I walked up to the box, curious as to what was inside. I looked inside and saw my own reflection. She told me to look carefully at the gift and then I went to sit down.

I was deeply moved by the gift. How many times in my life have I wished to be different, have I wished to be more outgoing, to be more open, and yet God made me exactly as I am. He has given me life, He has given me salvation, and I am truly unique, and there is nobody like me.

She asked every one of us what we saw in our gift. Some people could not hold it together as they described what they saw. I looked around the room and saw so many eyes filled with tears. How many of us sitting in that room had been seeking things from God without realizing the gift He has already given us? Without realizing that God made us the way we are for a reason?

She finished by saying that today, begin the act of being an exclusive model because there is nobody like you.

A Men.

Real Life

Time passes so fast. The days blend together. What happened to March? I am now fully entrenched into the Ixil lifestyle. My life here feels normal to me and so I forget to write about it, like other people won't find it interesting. For me, this is my "real life." But the truth is, my life and my normal experiences here are very different than the lives of most of the people who read my blog. So it is important that I share because even the things I now find uninteresting, other people may find fascinating.

What is "real life" anyway? When people return from vacation or from a short term mission experience, they say it's time to go back to "real life" or the "real world" as if everything they experienced was not reality. Real life is more than the box we make it in our minds. There are over 7 billion people on this planet encompassing thousands if not hundreds of thousands of different cultural groups. Real life is fascinating, it is diverse. Don't make the mistake of thinking your version of reality is the only one or the most important. It is demeaning to billions of people whose lives are very different from yours. The lives of the people I am working and living with here are just as real as yours.

I know we all know this intellectually and I don't mean to get on a soap box, but I feel like sometimes we all get so wrapped up in our own worlds (me included) that we forget that other people and other cultures have just as equal worth as our own. When we hear of great atrocities in other parts of the world, maybe it's easy to ignore because we don't see it as "real life." We forget that those lives are just as important as our own. We are stuck in our own boxes, far removed from the greater reality.

I am reminded of one of Plato's writings about the people who are raised and live all their lives chained in a cave, watching shadows flicker across a wall. One escapes and sees the sun for the first time. At first he is blinded but once his eyes adjust, he takes in the true reality all around him. In some ways I think all of us are like the people raised in the cave. We are raised with our own "realities" and sometimes we need to escape from our bubbles to discover the greater reality. Then we realize that our lives in our little caves are only one tiny, tiny piece to a far, far greater reality beyond anything we could imagine.

The Road

The sun was shining and I stepped out the door with excitement. I was excited to have the opportunity to walk the road on this beautiful day. I was looking forward to the solitude and the time enjoying God’s beautiful creation. Maybe I would have a chance to see some old friends along the way or maybe not. Either way, I was going to enjoy my time on the road. You never know what surprises will lay around the next corner. You never know what people you will meet while walking along.

The quietness on the road is only interrupted by the beautiful sounds of nature or the one or two vehicles that happen to pass by. I feel at home. The bus from the market passes me and drops people off. I see villagers carrying all their produce walking along together to their little village. All the women are dressed in their traditional colorful Mayan dresses. I pass a girl making wapiles to the backdrop of enormous green mountains. I see men working their land on the steep slopes. I pass the occasional cow, horse, or sheep. Every once in a while I will pass walkers heading the other direction carrying bundles of wood to fuel their stoves. We greet one another, and continue our journeys down the road. I pass through tiny villages. People are always curious, asking where I am going. I stop and talk with a family who wonder about me, why I am walking the road. I give them a destination but then explain that I walk because I love the road. I feel alive and the ways of my life begin to make sense in my mind. I feel peace, clarity, and wisdom. The ebbs and flows of my life are put in their proper perspective. Things in my life that once felt like strong winds and huge waves begin to feel like a light breeze and tiny ripples. God speaks with me on the road and reminds me of His creation.

I get lost in time, only enjoying the moment. I sit down at a spot overlooking a cliff. I see miles down the road, and a village way off in the distance. I open a book and read. The quiet is deafening.

I arrive to a familiar village, one I had developed a relationship with at another time in my life. Things feel the same, yet different. A woman catches up with me and talks with me, she leads to me to an old friend and we greet one another. He is working with other men, building a new school for the village. I go to his house and visit with his family for just brief minutes before they leave to work their land. I head back to the road, back home. A girl waves me over. I talk with her and her mom. Then I continue on. I wave to the family working their land as I walk up the hill. My legs are tired but my soul feels well. I stop and rest when a pick-up truck comes barreling up the road. I wave it down and hop in the back. The road goes faster and I miss the slower pace. The truck stops and two men and two boys with shovels pile in the back, coming off a hard day’s work. I arrive back to my town. My time on the road has ended and my energy is renewed.

Report from HOREB

Lupita swings at the park one fun Friday

6th grade class photo at the park

The first quarter is almost over for the children. Next week will be exams and then they will have the week after that off for Semana Santa (Holy week). The teachers have been meeting every Monday morning for devotions while the children have been having devotions every Thursday. They have been learning how to sow and all have been working on making their own scarfs. Their English has improved by leaps and bounds. I was pleasantly surprised with the 6th graders last week when they went in front of the class and introduced themselves in English. I thought I would have to guide them, but over half the class memorized everything in English with good pronunciation, good vocabulary, and with no help from me. The 5th grade teacher leaves early most days to get to his other job and so I have been spending some time with the 5th graders at the end of the day. I have been teaching them the song "Trading my Sorrows" in English. The kids really pick up songs very fast and has been a wonderful teaching tool. Next Tuesday, the children will compete in Soccer and one girl will compete in a running competition. They are excited for that. Thank you for your support of this school! Here are some more photos: