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April 2010

After living in Paraguay 4 years, we prepared to leave for our first furlough. Not only did we pack our bags with souvenirs, clothes and other things we thought were important, but we also tried to prepare our family of 7 emotionally for the change of living in Texas for a year. The first months back were busy. We immediately drove to the East Coast to visit supporters and do some sightseeing. During those 7 ½ weeks we stayed with 31 friends in 18 states. Our kids, who were too young when we left for Paraguay to really remember much about the US, got a taste of American life from the get go. Each home we visited had something new to offer them….trampolines, Wiis, scooters, movies. We went to parks and beaches, aquariums and zoos. After awhile I thought, my kids will never want to leave America. What child would want to leave “the land of plenty” and go back to playing marbles in the dirt?

About 6 weeks into our trip I asked rather nervously, “Do you miss Paraguay?” There was a loud chorus of yeses. “I miss my friends!” “I miss the food.” “I miss my animals.” “I want to go back home!”

It delights me when the children talk about wanting to go back to Paraguay. When people ask them about home, I love seeing their faces light up as they tell about their chickens and our house and their friends. After an American Christmas with a big tree and lots of gifts, they said, “Remember how we light fireworks to celebrate in Paraguay?” And while playing in snow for the first time they said, “Do you think our Paraguayan friends would like this?” I usually don’t have to try very hard to remind them of home, they talk about it often on their own. Just yesterday while discussing in American history the US flag and I asked the kids to draw a picture of it. Ginny asked, “Could I draw the Paraguay flag instead? I remember what it looks like.” Don’t get me wrong, they have loved the US. We have squeezed in so much and they have been able to experience a lifetime of memories. But they know that this is not permanent. They know that this is not home.

Now we have been in the U.S for 9 months and we are again faced with the challenge of packing our bags and preparing our family for the changes ahead. The year, which seemed so long at the start, is rapidly coming to an end. My children know that one day I will tell them to pack their bags because we are leaving. It would break my heart if they decided they didn’t want to leave. If they decided that life in the U.S was far too exciting and they never wanted to go back to Paraguay. For our family, an American life is not an option. God has clearly called us to another part of the world.

As Christians, we too are called to a different place. One day Christ will come and he will take us to the glorious mansion he has been preparing. O, how it would break his heart if we were not anticipating that day. “God, I like life here, can I stay one more day?” “God, can I have more time to get my life together?” “God, if only you hadn’t shown up now, I was just being able to enjoy the fruits of my labor.” It is OK to enjoy life here. God sends us such rich blessings and wants us to delight in them. But we must be ready to give them all up when he calls. Going home is not an option. He tells us in the Bible that our time is brief. Along the journey he reminds us not to get too comfortable. He sends beauty into our lives that point to a magnificent Creator who we will one day see face to face. He sends disappointments to remind us that it gets better that this. And he calls people back home before we are ready to let them go to keep us longing for that glorious reunion of the saints. I want to be like my middle child, Joshua, who is counting down the days till we get to go home.

COME LORD JESUS!