Dear family and friends,
I was walking to our local market to buy our groceries when a thought occurred to me. A couple days earlier a friend I had met with told me, “You have ADD? Wow, this is an ADD nightmare! I don’t have ADD but even I get really over-stimulated here.” So I thought to myself, I’m going to keep track mentally of everything that grabs my attention in just this 15-minute outing. I leave the house and walk by a few street dogs that are familiar to me. I know they probably won’t bother me. Two guys walk past me and make a remark. I don’t quite catch it all, but from their laughter I get the idea. I walk past the area where they dump trash from our market. The dogs are all rifling through the trash. Just recently we were in the biggest market of El Alto (actually I think of all Bolivia), where they were selling puppies. I think of their grim outlook as I watch the dogs scrounge. As I enter the market, that homeless man with thick dreds I often see passes with a bag. I assume he’s collected the day’s left-overs. I wonder a bit at what placed him in his current position. I buy what I came to buy and head back. I pass the bakery, hmmm smells so good! But I shouldn’t buy anything from there today. Nearing our home there’s a little plaza where I see youth interacting in groups, pretty much the same way they do in the States. Some things don’t change across culture. And then I realize, my friend is right! That is just a relaxing walk to the market, and still my head spins with thoughts as it receives copious amounts of stimuli.
I think I am currently entering into a time of adjustment and culture shock. When everything is new, it can be overwhelming. Add to it the fact that we are just now starting to build relationships with others, entering into a new work environment, cooking from scratch, washing clothes by hand, navigating a huge city (two, actually), and entering into the sharp brokenness of the women we are learning to love. All this together makes a sort of exhausting soup that we eat; some days just in sips, and other days in gulps.
But I take heart! I know the God I serve is faithful. He delights in us as his precious treasures and He would not allow us to pass through the storm in vain. I am learning so very much about myself, my marriage, my culture and my God. Sometimes it takes a true stripping away of all our comforts in order to see where we are putting our trust. When we have nothing left to grasp, we can see more clearly that which we truly needed all along. I observe myself striving to fill the emptiness, kind of like those cat and mouse cartoons where the cat has the mouse by his shirt, but the mouse keeps running in place. I think I’m accomplishing something, but in reality I’m running in place. I suppose all that I’m passing through is teaching me to let go, to acknowledge my own weakness and frailty, and to cling to Christ instead of that which fails me.
We were again surprised and blessed by the generosity we received in response to our August prayer letter. Our support account is in a much better position to finish up 2010. We want to let you know about an opportunity to support a women in the Suti Sana project. A couple of our donors were not able to complete their monthly pledges for one of the women we hired. As a result, our budget to cover her salary and therapy will be about $350 short by the end of the year. If you or someone you know would like to help sponsor this woman for the rest of 2010, just designate “Bolivia – Suti Sana” with any gift. Any amount, one-time or recurring, will help us close this gap. And if you don’t feel called to give right now, we could really use continued prayer for these women who are still in the midst of a difficult transition.
We also know that your prayers for us are carrying us right now. We are encouraged by your emails and the news we get about what’s going on over on the other side of the Equator. Please continue to pray, especially in this challenging time.
With love,
Becky and Adam