trip home

I had the joy to visit home recently, and it has been almost 3 years since I last went home. Actually it was surreal to me when I got out of the airport in Guatemala. I just could not believe I was home. One of my best friends came pick me up (because my mom was sick) and we went out to a local fried chicken place for dinner, and that was so good! As we drove to the streets and saw different places, many things were very familiar to me, but it seems foreign at the same time.

I am really happy from the trip.

From a logistical point, I was not stressed about scheduling my short week at home. Usually, I get many requests to meet up with different groups of people, and it can be very stressful to accommodate everyone. So this time, instead of saying "yes" to everyone,  I decided to just put people on hold, and consult with my mom first. As a result, my days were pretty relaxing, I got to meet up with everyone (family, church friends, high school friends, high school teachers) I wanted to see, and it was not rushed to go from a meeting to another one.

From a purpose-driven point, I wanted to focus on strengthening relationships with my mom and her side of the family. I have to admit that I am not too close to her, nor to her side of the family. So I wanted to talk to them more, to get to know them, and also to share with them about my life. I made a point to have meaningful conversation, but I wished I was more bold in certain times when I could share about my faith. Despite my weakness, I was happy to have a deep conversation with my mom about the gospel, and I can sense her desire to learn more about God. And that is very encouraging.

It was also neat to not have easy internet access, and that made more focused to think about things.

A realization I have after visiting my high school is that I am very blessed. The teachers were happy to see me, and happy to know that one of their students were able to attain some level of success in a foreign country. Most of them expressed that they knew I will get far in life. For more context, it is not easy for someone in Guatemala to go study abroad and find a job. I am reminded that I am very blessed to have the family support, the education, the skills, and the opportunity to study and work in Canada.

More so, it is really God who orchestrated all of this, and I am very thankful for what He has done.

And this linked to another lesson, which is that without God, I cannot achieve anything. I received many compliments from family and friends, and it is easy to lose sight that it is God who granted you all this. So I am reminded to be humble at all times. This is one of the fiercest battle in my life, and every day I need to learn how to humble myself as God can make you very successful, but He can also take it away in no time. So all the successes we have is to be attributed to our God.

And then, another realization came by because there were many talks about old anecdotes in school and in fellowship. And I am blessed that many people hold me in high regard because I was able to serve and help them in some way. This reminds me of the importance to live each day being very mindful on how you want people to remember you. Not because of self-glory, but because we are ambassadors of Christ. We want people to see that it is God who is enabling us to love one another sincerely.

ps. all these thoughts came around 2-3am haha

fellowship

Just came across a very good article about what fellowship is: http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/learn-to-fly-in-the-fellowship

It resonates with me very much for what I appreciate about fellowship, which is not just the good times spent together with fellow brothers, but also the labor and service in the Kingdom of God. And the joy to witness a fellow brother loving the gospel that has save us... all these add to the richness of what fellowship is for a Christian.