Thoughts from James

Here's a direct copy-paste of what I wrote on my own blog, but I thought it would be appropriate to post it here as well for future posterity :).

I'll first run through a brief schedule of what we did in our day, and then summarize some lessons I've learned (feel free to skim!).

Our schedule for every day was the following:
Wake up at 5:30am, breakfast at 6:00, devotions until 7:00, and chores till 7:30. We left the mission house to arrive at the construction site at 8:30am, where we would work until 2:30. VBS would last until 5:00pm, when we would return home to eat, do chores, and have some reflection time before going to sleep before 9:30-10:00pm.

To ensure that I don't bore you to tears with rambling, I thought I might highlight some lessons that I've learned:

a) After losing my luggage on the first few days, bearing with concrete floors, malaria infected mosquitoes, ants of every type (vicious too), and cold showers, I think God taught me how to trust Him to provide for me on the most basic level. In addition, being able to borrow clothes, air mattresses, DEET bug spray, and shower supplies, I've learned also that God often supports me often by placing people to labor alongside me.

b) A second theme that I've experienced is the need to slow down in life. Although there are many achievements and projects to strive toward, forgetting to slow down and listen to God plagues my life in America. Sitting with some workers during our lunch break, I realized that the Belizean culture is much more laid back, and they know how to sit around, chat with each other, and pass the time without feeling as if they were accomplishing nothing. That's not to say they are lazy (in fact, some of them built their own houses from scratch!), but they understand how to slow down and relax when needed.

c) A third lesson that I believe will be a continuing struggle is how to respect others as equals in the Lord's eye. While I would like to say I do, I was convicted by my assumptions of construction workers in America as I worked alongside Belizean construction workers (all of them fantastically talented, good-natured, and interesting) as well as supposedly "impoverished" children and teenagers (likewise good natured, intelligent, and disciplined). The way I relegate many people to certain categories without thinking through my assumptions was highlighted.

d) As I prepare to leave for Taiwan, I am overwhelmed by the variety of experiences that God has granted us as a human race. I think about the people I meet in Taiwan and their struggles, and I compare these to people in Belize, in San Fransisco, in Los Angeles, in university. The vast diversity of experience in life has taught me to humble myself, for surely no number of lifetimes can span the infinite variations, and I feel convicted to trust my life in God's hands. He knows what experiences are best for me and how to best use the short time I have in this life.

Ultimately, the greatest lesson I am learning is how to trust in God. As I prepare for more foreign experiences teaching in China over the summer, my experience in Belize has taught me to truly follow after the footsteps of Christ and listen to his bidding.