Rejoice

I visited my blog today and discovered I have not posted in 2 months! I suppose that is a good picture of how my heart has felt these last couple months- empty with nothing to give.

I didn't realize how real culture stress can be. I kept hearing this little phrase in the beginning of my time here. Sadly in my pride I just had thoughts like, "That will not happen to me" or "My relationship with the Lord is strong enough to not have to go through that."

Well here I am, a few months later deciding I have much more compassion for M's going through this season and I will no longer be attributing it to a person simply not knowing their identity in the Lord!

I recently read two blogs of M friends who are serving in different parts of Africa. Both of them talked about this issue of culture stress and both had the same solution: thanksgiving.

This is something I have been learning to be more intentional about since being here. I even made a point to mention the issue of thanksgiving in my last newsletter. But... I must admit it has still been a challenging area for me!

A few weeks ago I felt the Lord ask me to take the whole day thanking Him for every little thing I could think of. So every chance I had, whether it was a short bus ride, a moment alone in the bathroom, a class break or break from doing homework, I stopped and thought of things to be thankful for. By the end of the day, all of the frustrations I was experiencing seemed to shrink into the background as Jesus and His goodness became the highlight of my thoughts and feelings. 

When I woke up the next morning feeling the same way I had two days before, I knew that just one day of thanksgiving was not enough to transform my heart completely. It needed to become a lifestyle.

So this is where I am now- taking a little time each night before bed to focus on things to be thankful for. Sometimes it is hard to get started. When I have had a bad day I really have to push my soul to give thanks. But once I get going, my heart softens and giving thanks becomes a joy. I know this will only get easier over time.