- Important stuff has been stolen from me
- I've been in excruciating pain
- I've been threatened
- My patience has been tried countless times in so many ways
- Amazing people have left my life
- At one point, I was living off the least I possibly could
- I've broken down several times
- I've thought of giving up and moving on
It was worth it.
All of it. I don't think there is a single thing I would have changed. Would I like my amazing laptop back? Yes. Would I rather have skipped all of the pain and sickness and stress that I went through? Most definitely. Would it have been nice to get rid of all the trouble and have a perfect year? You bet. But, because of these things that have occurred in my life, I gained something more valuable than all of the niceness that I could have received: a stronger faith in my God. After every one of these things that happened to me, I always did my best to direct it to God and give it to Him. Was it easy? You'd be crazy if you thought it was. It's never easy to just give something up like that. As humans, we want to have control over everything. We want to know what is going to happen when and why it's going to happen. The thing is, though, when we try it on our own, we fail. Every time. Maybe not right away, but it falls in the end. There's always something not perfect in everything we try on our own. Yeah, maybe you have that dream car or house you've always wanted, but you went through innumerable amounts of stress, and still are, due to working to pay that off. Maybe that amazing job is all you could ever imagine, but it's caused you to draw away from your family and friends due to your unfair boss giving you unreal hours, and now you're thinking it over. Maybe you've become super popular and everyone's your friend, but you're never sure who actually is your friend and who's just using you. I'm not saying that God's going to make you super popular and have everyone love you, but the point I'm trying to get across is that when you do it on your own power, something is bound to fail. It's true. I've learned that the hard way so many times. But, after I realized what I was doing wrong, I looked to God and placed it in His hands. And EVERY time, He comes through. It may not be right away, but He does. And the more I did it, the more simple it was to do it. I look back on everything, and so many good things have come from my stronger faith in God. It has really helped me persevere and make change in my little neighborhood of Terrazas II in Tijuana, Mexico:
- The kids’ program has grown from 12-15 avg. to 25-45 (30 avg.) weekly
- 28 new kids have come to the church because of the soccer team I started
- 12 of those kids come regularly
- 2 kids have learned how to read
- David (1st kid) has gone from almost knowing his letters to reading short stories with ease
- Enrique (2nd kid) has gone from almost knowing his letters to reading short paragraphs
- 8 kids have learned/are learning how to sing or play an instrument
- Brayan was practicing drums with the worship team due to this
- 20 people are learning English, 17 of them being kids
- 6 families receive in-home relational discipleship
With that being said, I'm super pumped for what God has done this amazing year and what He is going to do and bring in this next chapter of my life!! Hopefully, you are, too. Just remember to place it in His hands. He's got this.
"...be content with what you have, for He has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' So we can confidently say, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?'" - Hebrews 13:5b-6
