About a month ago, a high school friend of mine visited us. It was fun to walk down memory lane with her as she snapped photos all over campus and we talked about our many memories here at RVA, as students. She lives in the US and is juggling the roles of mom, wife, and employee. And it struck me: Our lives are not that different. Sometimes I wonder if people think our life here is different just because we are missionaries. The answer - not really! We get up, go to work, come home, try to fit in the kids' homework with our dishes, emails, and other business. We have good days and bad. We can easily get caught up in the mundane, the nitty-gritty, the boring. Many days, my head is so bent down to my task in front of me, I have to remind myself to look up and see what is around me.
Thankfully, there are those moments that I remember why we are here - the bigger picture. The moment when a student has a prayer request for his family's ministry and I remember that we are part of the big picture of reaching people for Christ. The moment when we witness a dozen students taking a stand for Christ in the waters of baptism and I remember that we are investing in the lives of these kids.
There are also moments I remember we live in Africa. When we hit our Christmas vacation and after catching our breath, we pack up our tents and coolers and head to the wild for a days. We feel the warm African breeze, smell the dust and earth, and savor God's creation.
May we all remember to look up today and see what is around us.
