Hard to Leave

June 26th

Artezon, Ecuador

It’s always tough to leave somewhere where you’ve put so much of yourself into. That was the case today, our last day in Artezon. I’ve spent the last two weeks with more than twenty students and adults, willing to give of their time and resources to make this small, mountain community close to the camp a better place. Today we left with our paint supplies, empty juice tank, and a willingness to still work in this community.

Mission work is like an addiction. Once you start, you don’t want to stop. You’re always reminded of that craving to go back and finish the work you started and to reconnect with the kids you spent time with. You’re always reminded of the smiles and waves of the people and children in the village. You remember the names of certain kids that you connected with during the week. I know that I’ll miss the time I’ll get to spend with Danny, Lenny, Diego, Esteban, and the rest of the crew.

While I certainly already miss the kids in Artezon, I know that God is working in that community on His own time and that He needs me elsewhere. For that reason, I never get tired of doing mission work. There is always some exciting place elsewhere that needs the hands and feet of God to work at. Good memories remind us of the fun times, the Spanish-English conversations, the craziness of working with foreign kids for an hour and a half, and the hard work out in the sun. And maybe that’s why it’s so hard to leave sometimes, because we’re afraid of leaving our memories behind.

Looking back though, the past two weeks have been a huge blessing. I was blessed to work with extremely hard student and adult workers and people who came to leave their footprint on an Ecuadorian village. For those of you reading that have just returned to the states, I hope that you tell as many people as possible about your experiences, the children you met, and difference you made at the school. For those who have yet to go on a foreign mission trip but feel God knocking on that door, I hope this encourages you to step out of the box of what you know as comfortable and make a difference half way around the world. Finally, for those of you who feel no calling to the foreign mission field, I hope this encourages you to create and nurture those relationships you have (or can have) immediately around you.

The mission field is everywhere around you, not just in Ecuador. Make the most of each day so that when all is said and done, you don’t want to leave what was once so uncomfortable to you.