This morning our MaBon (housekeeper) came over to clean the house. She isn't feeling well at all today. When she came this morning, she told me that she wasn't feeling well and I realized I didn't know how to say anything that showed that I cared for her and wished her well (thats going in my next language lesson). I was a little frustrated that I couldn't say anything to show her that I cared for her. I wish I could express to y'all how much I deeply care and love this woman. I knew her from my 2009 trip, and she has shown nothing but love and care to me all of the days that I have known her. That is truly how she is to everyone around her. She is diligent and hard working. She will come to our aide whenever we need her (example: I locked myself out of my bathroom and she called a locksmith for us). She is a person I have come to love and cherish.
Later this morning, I went to the kitchen to make some hot tea for myself and I heard her coughing in the next room. I decided I would make her a cup too, but my mind went blank on how to ask someone if they would like some tea. I stood there for a second (or two or thirty) to try and put the sentence together in my head. It's such a simple sentence, but thats what happens to my brain on a Monday morning. I finally figured out how to say something of the sort, so I got her attention and asked. She laughed a little at my language, but she grateful said, "Yes that would be good." as she patted her chest and throat to show it really would help. I was filled with so much joy that I finally could show someone in this country that I care about them in their heart language. Father was so good to me in helping me remember those words and giving me the thought to make her some tea. It not only encouraged me with language but also to love on our sweet MaBon.
After a little over a month of language learning, I can confidently say it has been everything and anything but easy. It has pushed me to my limit on many levels. It's one thing to study a language in a classroom with assignments, quiz's, and exams, but living in the culture and being surrounded by people who do not speak english or can speak very little english is something completely different. You lose all sense of identity, competence, and confidence (all of which we were warned about over and over again at training).
I have had good days, really good moments, bad days and some really really bad days. There has been days when I could understand a good bit of the language around me, but then there have been days when I don't feel like I've been studying the language at all. Those days, unfortunately, have been the majority lately. BUT this makes the good days and really good moments so much sweeter. Some of the greatest highs that I have experienced here has been when I can create my own sentence that I came up with on my own to a complete stranger, or when I can hold a conversation with someone, or tell a long story to a friend about my life, or just simply understanding what someone is saying to me.
On the days when I am not looking forward to adding new vocabulary to my language snowball or studying for another 3 hours, I always come back to "why am I learning this crazy language again?" Every time I think about this, I have to come back to "why did I move to the other side of the world?" and "why did I leave home and family for 2 years?". Every time I come back to the good news.
I came to this beautiful country to share the greatest story every told. News that can bring hope to their hopeless lives. News that can bring them joy and a purpose. News that can bring them out of blindness and out of death. News that changed the world. News that changed me. I didn't come because of me and my desires. I came because I love my Father and my Father loves these people. If I want to share, I must share it in their heart language. Right now, I obviously don't have the language to share the good news, but persistence, endurance, and focus during this time of studying will lead to that.
While offering hot tea is not sharing the good news, it still served it's purpose of showing someone in a different country, with a different language then my own that I care about her. She knows what I believe and I hope that our care for her speaks volumes.
Please lift up this sweet woman. She is not a daughter to the Father, but she has heard the good news before. Ask that her heart is opened to understand the good news, and her eyes be opened to just how good Father is.
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Would you like some hot tea?
This morning our MaBon (housekeeper) came over to clean the house. She isn't feeling well at all today. When she came this morning, she told me that she wasn't feeling well and I realized I didn't know how to say anything that showed that I cared for her and wished her well (thats going in my next language lesson). I was a little frustrated that I couldn't say anything to show her that I cared for her. I wish I could express to y'all how much I deeply care and love this woman. I knew her from my 2009 trip, and she has shown nothing but love and care to me all of the days that I have known her. That is truly how she is to everyone around her. She is diligent and hard working. She will come to our aide whenever we need her (example: I locked myself out of my bathroom and she called a locksmith for us). She is a person I have come to love and cherish.
Later this morning, I went to the kitchen to make some hot tea for myself and I heard her coughing in the next room. I decided I would make her a cup too, but my mind went blank on how to ask someone if they would like some tea. I stood there for a second (or two or thirty) to try and put the sentence together in my head. It's such a simple sentence, but thats what happens to my brain on a Monday morning. I finally figured out how to say something of the sort, so I got her attention and asked. She laughed a little at my language, but she grateful said, "Yes that would be good." as she patted her chest and throat to show it really would help. I was filled with so much joy that I finally could show someone in this country that I care about them in their heart language. Father was so good to me in helping me remember those words and giving me the thought to make her some tea. It not only encouraged me with language but also to love on our sweet MaBon.
After a little over a month of language learning, I can confidently say it has been everything and anything but easy. It has pushed me to my limit on many levels. It's one thing to study a language in a classroom with assignments, quiz's, and exams, but living in the culture and being surrounded by people who do not speak english or can speak very little english is something completely different. You lose all sense of identity, competence, and confidence (all of which we were warned about over and over again at training).
I have had good days, really good moments, bad days and some really really bad days. There has been days when I could understand a good bit of the language around me, but then there have been days when I don't feel like I've been studying the language at all. Those days, unfortunately, have been the majority lately. BUT this makes the good days and really good moments so much sweeter. Some of the greatest highs that I have experienced here has been when I can create my own sentence that I came up with on my own to a complete stranger, or when I can hold a conversation with someone, or tell a long story to a friend about my life, or just simply understanding what someone is saying to me.
On the days when I am not looking forward to adding new vocabulary to my language snowball or studying for another 3 hours, I always come back to "why am I learning this crazy language again?" Every time I think about this, I have to come back to "why did I move to the other side of the world?" and "why did I leave home and family for 2 years?". Every time I come back to the good news.
I came to this beautiful country to share the greatest story every told. News that can bring hope to their hopeless lives. News that can bring them joy and a purpose. News that can bring them out of blindness and out of death. News that changed the world. News that changed me. I didn't come because of me and my desires. I came because I love my Father and my Father loves these people. If I want to share, I must share it in their heart language. Right now, I obviously don't have the language to share the good news, but persistence, endurance, and focus during this time of studying will lead to that.
While offering hot tea is not sharing the good news, it still served it's purpose of showing someone in a different country, with a different language then my own that I care about her. She knows what I believe and I hope that our care for her speaks volumes.
Please lift up this sweet woman. She is not a daughter to the Father, but she has heard the good news before. Ask that her heart is opened to understand the good news, and her eyes be opened to just how good Father is.
Later this morning, I went to the kitchen to make some hot tea for myself and I heard her coughing in the next room. I decided I would make her a cup too, but my mind went blank on how to ask someone if they would like some tea. I stood there for a second (or two or thirty) to try and put the sentence together in my head. It's such a simple sentence, but thats what happens to my brain on a Monday morning. I finally figured out how to say something of the sort, so I got her attention and asked. She laughed a little at my language, but she grateful said, "Yes that would be good." as she patted her chest and throat to show it really would help. I was filled with so much joy that I finally could show someone in this country that I care about them in their heart language. Father was so good to me in helping me remember those words and giving me the thought to make her some tea. It not only encouraged me with language but also to love on our sweet MaBon.
After a little over a month of language learning, I can confidently say it has been everything and anything but easy. It has pushed me to my limit on many levels. It's one thing to study a language in a classroom with assignments, quiz's, and exams, but living in the culture and being surrounded by people who do not speak english or can speak very little english is something completely different. You lose all sense of identity, competence, and confidence (all of which we were warned about over and over again at training).
I have had good days, really good moments, bad days and some really really bad days. There has been days when I could understand a good bit of the language around me, but then there have been days when I don't feel like I've been studying the language at all. Those days, unfortunately, have been the majority lately. BUT this makes the good days and really good moments so much sweeter. Some of the greatest highs that I have experienced here has been when I can create my own sentence that I came up with on my own to a complete stranger, or when I can hold a conversation with someone, or tell a long story to a friend about my life, or just simply understanding what someone is saying to me.
On the days when I am not looking forward to adding new vocabulary to my language snowball or studying for another 3 hours, I always come back to "why am I learning this crazy language again?" Every time I think about this, I have to come back to "why did I move to the other side of the world?" and "why did I leave home and family for 2 years?". Every time I come back to the good news.
I came to this beautiful country to share the greatest story every told. News that can bring hope to their hopeless lives. News that can bring them joy and a purpose. News that can bring them out of blindness and out of death. News that changed the world. News that changed me. I didn't come because of me and my desires. I came because I love my Father and my Father loves these people. If I want to share, I must share it in their heart language. Right now, I obviously don't have the language to share the good news, but persistence, endurance, and focus during this time of studying will lead to that.
While offering hot tea is not sharing the good news, it still served it's purpose of showing someone in a different country, with a different language then my own that I care about her. She knows what I believe and I hope that our care for her speaks volumes.
Please lift up this sweet woman. She is not a daughter to the Father, but she has heard the good news before. Ask that her heart is opened to understand the good news, and her eyes be opened to just how good Father is.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment