Some hard things

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered…

We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure…” (2 Cor. 1:8)

I identify with Paul’s words and I was encouraged by his honesty.  Where would I be if the Bible authors had left out the lows and only written about the highs?

So this blog is a little different than our others.  It is a peek into the realities of our life and the struggles we’ve faced as a family.

When it rains, water leaks in through the windows.  When it rains a lot, a lot of water leaks in through the windows.   Around 1am, 3am, and 5am a rooster crows right outside of Rebekah’s window, and the sound ricochets off the cement walls in our house.   Often we don’t have enough water pressure to trigger the shower’s heating mechanism, so either it’s a cold shower or no shower.  Our stove is not insulated which takes twice as long to bake.  If there is a flux of electricity and I have the washing machine running, the washer will stop working and sit unfinished until I go out to hang it up only to realize I actually need to reset it instead. 

Each time we make the seven hour drive into Asuncion to do paperwork it is exhausting and causes disorganization for several days.  When we need to buy something, first we must figure out where the item is sold, and second we must figure out how the item is sold.  For example, at one store she rang me up at one register, I paid at another, and at a third, after producing my “paid” receipt, I was handed my items.  Traffic has different rules here.  I’ll leave it at that.

When we walk down the street, people stare at us because we look, walk, and act differently.  We don’t know when to greet and when to just pass buy.  And at what stage does the relationship need to be before I greet the other ladies with a kiss on the cheek?  When we engage in conversation, we miss the details of what is said, which causes the stress of misunderstanding.  When we attempt small talk we run out of questions quickly and there becomes an awkward silence as we don’t know a culturally appropriate exit.

We have had sick stomachs, diarrhea, aching muscles, colds, a sliced foot, and tired bodies.  And yea, we’ve wanted to go home. 

But here is where we draw our strength.   

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered…

We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure…

But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God” (2 Cor. 1:8-9).

To Him be all glory, forever and ever!  For He is faithful and good.