This pequenito light of mine: Dance with your heart

I can’t sleep. This seems to be a theme in my blog entries. Today was a good day. Why?

completed my laundry and cleaned my room – it is SO clean and organized.
Played soccer with some friends
visited the orphanage
went to young adult group at church
attended a small concert with really good music

friends from back home, courtesy of Will (io)

Before I left for Bolivia I posted something about how loved I felt by friends and family and how I would share this love with others here. I want to tell you that today I shared that love. It’s a weird feeling in my chest that just builds up and overwhelms me for the kids that we hang out with every Friday and Saturday.

Tonight at the young adult gathering they spoke on Hebrews 11. The first verse of Hebrews 11 says “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Faith has been a recurring theme of my time in Bolivia. It is absolutely essential to have faith and to wake up every morning with the full assurance that God is at work. The chapter continues to give concrete examples of people who lived by faith. Honestly, I can’t even give it justice in describing this chapter – you simply have to read it. (click the link if you don't have a bible near you)

The person that stuck out the most to me was Abraham.

“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God”.

Can you imagine that? I worry about how my future will be. But can you imagine wandering around and staying in a foreign land – with so much uncertainty from the world’s point of view. How many questions could be posed in this situation – “How is God going to give us this land?” “How will we know if the land is the land he promised?” “What if I miss my hometown, can I go back?”

God has given us promises in the Bible. Just as he made a promise with Abraham – we have promises through Jesus. What we are told to do is obey God’s word and live it out, even though we don’t know what we’re doing. By faith we are to live our lives with full assurance in each step that God has a clue what he is building. Our culture is so focused on having concrete answers and knowing the next steps. The question is always “What are you going to do?” “What is next?” “What does your future look like?” “What are you going to be?” “Who are you going to marry?” “Where are you going to live?” So many questions that make our heads spin and leave us bewildered, stressed, worried, and without peace. But God gives us a peace that passes understanding when we completely trust in him (Philippians 4:7). That is the difference.

I have no idea what my future holds. No idea. I’ll say it again – I have NO idea what the future holds, no one does. All I know is that God is in my life. He is present. I have the Bible and I have friends and family to help along the way. And even with friends and family far away, and if they were ever to disappear (hopefully never) – I still have the Bible. Tonight the speaker made a point that the people of faith referenced in Hebrews chapter 11 didn’t have the full Bible as a point of reference, they only had their faith in God and the hope of what they couldn’t see. We have the Bible in its full form as a guide for life. A verse just popped into my head and I have no idea its reference but it is “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

So that is the story of today. Tomorrow is a new day, with new lessons, and good times, and probably tons of yawns.

I’m going to try and sleep – It is almost 3 a.m. now. Thank you for your love and support. Can’t say it enough.

CON AMOR (CITO), Alison

kids like taking my camera to take pics

I tried to make cookies for some Bolivians - I used pancake mix on accident instead of flour. woops. good thing they haven't tried many chocolate chip cookies here (sad truth)