Bulldozers or Butterflies?
Today is Sunday, the 20th of September, and we’re tying the finishing bow on yet another fantastic weekend conference for women and children. The weather behaved very nicely, and the Nest staff, including our 4 new German volunteers, were excellent in all their efforts. The supporting cast of missionaries from Cityview church were almost entirely brand new, which we love to share with them in the higher calling of serving the BriBri community a strong dose of Jesus’s love and grace.
At one point, however the entire conference and our peace of mind were put on hold, as a massive swarm of ants was on the march. ( think biblical plague). What seemed like trillions of ants came wandering thru the kitchen and main meeting house ( casona) and there wasn’t a single thing to do except to hightail it out of their way. Especially for the newcomers it was a reminder that the Nest may have been planted in the jungle, but the jungle hasn’t gone anywhere! Those of us more seasoned with the marching of the ants phenomenon know that their just passing through and everything cleared up after about an hour’s time.
Seeing the women and kids' bright smiles as they climbed the hill and then back down again reminded me of Mathew 5:14 “You are a light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden."
To me it’s a relief to know that it’s not “ my” light, nor my goodness or righteousness, but rather the light of Jesus that shines His light from within me. Though the necessity of surrender is hard, in the end it’s truly Jesus that does all the heavy lifting.
Speaking of heavy lifting, since our last blog, and the needs which I expressed to you all, the Lord graced us with every single one of them. The tree trimming, the wishlists were all supplied and then some! The bridge? (Well that’s a design in progress at the moment so we’ll have to see where the numbers land). But with so many praises we thank the Lord for that. Another mention of praise is that it appears we have finally left the rainier weather behind ( for now), so we’re all enjoying drying out a bit.
In front of us are many tasks, both spiritual and physical, but I’m confident that what the Lord has begun He is faithful to complete in and through us. Karina and I have quietly developed a method of discerning Gods will in things both in our own personal life and the Nest. We refer to it as “ bulldozers or butterflies “. When we really want or need something, we ask ourselves if the Lord is peacefully bringing this to us like a gentle butterfly, or are we pushing hard or bulldozing to get things done out of our own necessity and will. God knows what we need, long before we even ask for it, so we’ve learned to simply do the asking and then let God be God as we let go of the outcome. We are both very driven and stubborn people so this has taken a lot of practice, but the distinction between the two ways of being couldn’t be more clear. We’re grateful for yesterday, thankful for today, and confidently hopeful for tomorrow.
I pray that each one of you live a life of abundance in the peace and joy of God's never-ending love for you.
Let’s meet again soon. And continue your prayers for the Nest, Karina & I, the staff, and the BriBri community we are privileged to serve.
With love and gratitude
James Beach
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