Greetings!
It’s been some time since I’ve taken time to sit and write. Some have mentioned I’ve been far too quiet lately! This month marks 3 months since being back on Canadian soil after spending 3 months in Ecuador. I don’t know how to express the changes and growth made over the past 6 months. When I think of the excited yet very uncertain girl I was in February, I’m humbled to see just how much God has stretched me over these months. I had no idea how completely life-changing Ecuador would be. But I also had no idea how difficult coming back would be. The Lord tested me in Ecuador and these 3 months in Canada has been filled with just as many tests. There’s no book to tell you what will happen next or the challenges and joys you’ll experience.
It has been a rollercoaster ride in many ways. Family and church family are certainly a blessing, and close friends to walk alongside me as I process things. I’ve been an emotional wreck sometimes, lonely, I’ve struggled to reconnect, but God has used people to speak truth in love to help push me to take the steps I couldn’t. When placed in a new country, culture, and community it is brutually humbling how the Lord uses it to expose your greatest fears, insecurities, and heart struggles. When returning to your home there’s the temptation to fall back into those same comforts instead of being willing to grow in the areas that you’ve beeen challenged with. I often feel like I’m stumbling along the way, but by grace alone I know God is preparing me for what He has in store.
So where am I now?
I’m thankful for the road God has led me down and I’m excited to keep growing. I desire to use the gifts God has given me locally and also take time to prepare my heart for missions. The apostle Paul talks about being content in every circumstance, and I am content how the Lord is using me presently. Does this mean I have forgotten about friends in Ecuador? Does this mean my heart doesn’t ache for the people in Ecuador?
No, I miss them. There’s not a day when I don’t communicate with someone from Ecuador. I pray for them constantly. Just as God gives parents a deep growing love for their newborn and I’ve been given a love for the church family and people in Ecuador that I can’t express. There are great needs in Ecuador that can be overwhelming, but I continue to pray about them. I recently finished reading the book Trafficked – a British girl who is sold on the streets by a man who claimed to love her. It was heart wrenching and difficult to read, but it opened my eyes to hear Sophie Hayes’ story and the evils in this world. These evils happen close to home and worldwide. I thought about Ecuador. I thought about the abused women and girls who don’t have organizations or family to help them. My heart breaks for them and I keep praying.
It is humbling to share the journey with so many and every step taken the Lord shows more needs and my prayer is to be part of the Kingdom agenda. There’s been a lot of wrestling, but the verse from Jeremiah 6:16 has helped me so much.
Thus says the Lord:
“Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
and find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
Stand at the crossroads. Look (search). Ask (for wisdom) where the good way is; and walk in it. There is peace walking where the Lord leads, and unrest when walking the selfish path. This for all of us… no matter the place, stage of life or situation. We are all tempted to walk our own way in every situation instead of searching to find the good way. Where God wants us to walk… even if it means high cost. The way without God is far worse and I’m learning to lose your life is gain.
I count myself so rich to have loved ones here and in Ecuador, and that both share pieces of their lives with me. I pray these bonds continue to grow as we walk in the good way.
Blessings,
Rebekah
by grace alone 