I am not going to lie and say that this past week or two has
been easy, because it hasn’t. I have
been very frustrated with my delayed departure to Bolivia. You see, since the beginning of this journey,
I have been planning to be in Bolivia by August 1st and here it is
August 30th. Monday, the 27th,
was the first day of school at SCCLC, and my students have started their school
year with a substitute. This past week
and a half I have been on my knees in tears, mad at God, frustrated at my
presence in the United States, sad I am not there to greet my students or get
to know my coworkers. It has been a week
of ups and downs. Don’t get me wrong, I
love being around my family and being able to have lunch somewhere besides in a
school building. I have been called by
God to go and he has provided the funds for me to get on the plane and even
have an apartment that I can rent in Bolivia, yet this one big thing called a
visa is standing in my way. Why? I have asked God this many times in the last
week or so, and the answer varies each time I ask it.
Many of you may not know that I am not a reader, but instead
listen to books. I have spent many a
road trip from Atlanta to Searcy listening to hours of books. This week in my despair and frustration, I went
back and found a book that I downloaded weeks ago thinking it would be great to
listen to on the trip to Bolivia, but instead God needed me to hear it this week. The book is called The Circle Maker:
Praying circles around your biggest dreams and greatest fears. Mark Batterson starts by telling the story
of Honi, the circle maker who being in an area of severe drought for 7 years
drew a circle in the sand, knelt down in it praying for the Lord to bring the
rain. He stayed there, praying, and
expecting God to deliver…and the Almighty did.
Batterson shared other answers for those that circled promises in
scripture, dreams, fears, and needs in prayer.
In my listening, I was taken to Habbakuk. As I read the book of Habbakuk, it became
clear to me that he wrestled with God.
He argued with God asking him why he was allowing Judah to fall deeper
and deeper into their evil ways. He pled
with God to show up and do something about it.
He poured out his heart to God, and God answered him.
In the beginning of Habbakuk 2,
Habbakuk says, “I will stand at my watch and station myself
on the ramparts, I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I
am to give to this complaint.
The Lord answered him saying, “Write down the revelation…
For the revelation awaits an appointed time, it speaks of the end and will not
prove false. Though it linger, wait for
it; it will certainly come and will not delay.” (2: 1-3)
One might say to this verse that it has delayed and the
appointed time has come and gone, but they would be wrong. My reaction after reading this small portion
of Habbakuk was to giggle and sit with my mouth open for 10 minutes as I
thought it hilarious that God used a book of the Bible that I had hardly even
laid eyes on to speak to me in this moment of doubt and frustration. Reading through the remainder of the book
allowed me to see that Habbakuk and I are very similar. We both expressed our concerns, doubts of His
power, frustration in why He has not dealt with the situation on our time, and
we both received a word from the Lord that allowed us to regain hope in the
Almighty Jehovah Jireh who provides what is necessary in the appointed
time. I am so thankful that the word of
the Lord is alive!!
So now I station myself watching and waiting as I pray circles around this visa, those handling it in the Bolivian government, the school, and more importantly the promise of my God to provide it in His time.
I
also pray circles around the city of Santa Cruz de la sierra, Bolivia
that, as you can see in the picture to the left, is laid out in
concentric circles. Someone long ago was praying circles around this
place and didn't have a clue how God would use these circles. FYI, the
definition of concentric circles...circles that have a common center. I
will be praying circles around this city and those in it to allow
Christ and his ways to be their common center. Please join me in
praying circles around this city, its people, and my visa!
Update on the visa: Monday, I got a call that the board of
directors for SCCLC had a connection in the government in La Paz that was going
to help speed the process along.
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