I have just concluded my last "off" weekend this summer. Our final two week team arrived yesterday and when they leave we will have a brief six hour break before the final group arrives for just one week. It is absurd to believe that eight and a half weeks have already passed and in another three and a half I'll be home (what?!).
This last outreach went well. God took some time to teach me about patience. One day the kids were just really misbehaving and not putting forth the effort I know they are capable of. As I was getting frustrated, I realized God must feel this way all the time as He watches us fail to do what we know is right or as He has to teach us the same lessons again and again. And despite all of my frustrations I truly love these kids and want the best for them - so how much more must God love us! I am special to God in the same way these kids are special to me, and I mean that in both senses of the word "special."
"The challenge to grow and the grace to fail" is a quote I read this week by Judson Morgan describing the theater I was a part of at school. I think it pleases God to put us in circumstances where we feel "the challenge to grow and the grace to fail." God has done that for me here in the DR as I am pushed to learn more, yet surrounded by a wonderful, supportive community.
I also got to practice patience as Taúmi did not want to follow instructions one day; she was more interested in playing in the swing. I held her as she continued to scream, cry, and squirm in attempts to get to the swing. She made herself so upset that she even threw up a little. However, God is good and rewards us as we stick it out through some of these difficult situations. Taúmi is learning to follow directions and that she can't just do everything her own way. Her tantrums are getting shorter each time and she is becoming a more willing participant. Praise God for the work He is doing in these kids lives.
On a lighter note, one of the kids, Daniel, was playing dead on the porch where we were all eating lunch. So Angelica, another little girl, ran over to give him "CPR" and was pressing on his stomach. On one of the repetitions, she managed to squeeze a fart out of him! Sorry for the crude humor, but it was one of the most hilarious things that has happened at school! All of us teachers were practically rolling on the ground we were laughing so hard.
"But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him." - 2 Samuel 14:14
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