Lessons from the Green Way

I wanted to have some time alone with God on this last Sunday morning in Spain, so I set out walking a trail called La Via Verde, the Green Way, from the neighborhood of Batoi. It used to be a train track, now converted into a paved path for foot traffic and bicycles. At first, I was just going to walk to the bridge that can be seen from afar, but upon reaching it, curiosity moved me on to see what was on the other side. Seeing that the path continued, and that it went through tunnels and woods, I decided to walk to the end of it and then return. (I walked 3.5 kilometers before I realized it doesn´t end--then I turned around and walked back.) I walked along, talking with God silently, enjoying the view. It was crowded with people out for exercise--families, cyclists, old folks out for a leisurely stroll, and people walking their dogs. I wanted to commune with God alone, and I kept a look-out for a side path or even just a rock in the shade off the path where I could sit alone and think. Not finding anywhere that I thought was safe from scorpions, I continued to walk among the crowds, moving to the side for cyclists and stepping around dog piles that hadn´t been picked up. I became frustrated and asked God to show me a quiet, shady place to meet with Him.  A poem came to mind, which had also surfaced when we were on the mountaintop near Javea earlier this month. It goes roughly like this:

I wanted to be close to God

And climbed the highest steeple.

But God said, ¨Go back down again.

I dwell among the people.¨

(I don´t know who wrote it)

God seemed to say to me, ¨You don´t get to be a hermit--you must seek me and walk and talk with me among the people and amidst the busy-ness of life.¨ He said I could walk and talk with Him in any location. It´s not about where I serve Him, or even in what capacity, but about walking and talking with Him, building relationship, just like I have been with Susanna this month, and just like I have with Mike for 27 years. God´s goal isn´t for me to serve Him or to work for Him. His goal is to be with me and enjoy my company! Sometimes He may want to get me alone for a grand revelation, but usually He just wants to go for a walk with me. How presumptious for me to seek out a quiet place to go and almost demand, ¨Now talk to me!¨ This is no replacement for daily conversations and relationshp-building. In fact, if I´m too busy for Him on a regular basis, why would He impart great wisdom to me on the rare occasion that I delegate as ¨God Time¨?

Wrapping up

It´s with mixed emotions that I think about the past month. I´m ready to go home, no question, but I really do love this city and these people! If I could have my family here with me, I think I would be content to stay indefinitely. I do miss the dark green of the cornfields at this time of year, and the sweet smell of the heavy air (though I don´t miss the humidity). I miss being able to see forever-or at least it feels that way-as the mountains, though they are beautiful, and the city give me a bit of a claustrophic feeling sometimes. I love being able to walk everywhere I need to go. I don´t miss having my own car at all (probably because Carla is so good about taking me whenever I need wheels). I do miss the quiet of the country-the neighborhood here is so noisy (as previously mentioned). I miss being in total control of my own schedule. Mostly, I miss my husband, my best friend, but I can´t think about that and keep myself together!

This week we finished up English camp for adults and we finished working on Charlie´s house. With the work done, the team met at Mark and Carla´s to do some baking for the final program and to have pizza and swimming at the home of British friends, but Susanna and I skipped out and went to the coastal city of Alicante. Now that´s a beautiful city! Perfect weather, the Mediterranean Sea and a medieval castle! We spent a good part of the day assembling a camp care package to send to Emily. I wanted to make sure all the goodies in it were typical Spanish. Then it ended up weighing too much-the overage of 35 grams was going to double the postage, so we opted to tear it open and remove a couple of pieces of candy instead! We couldn´t find any packing tape, and I´m really hoping the scotch tape we resealed it with will do the job. If not, well, Ems, know that I tried.

The castle at Alicante - view from the beach

We went to the beach but they were flying a red flag, meaning there was a rip tide warning, so people aren´t supposed to get in. People did anyway, but we just waded. We wanted to go to the castle, but in order to catch our return bus and get home for the English class program, we didn´t have time. In fact, we ended up practically running to get back to the bus in time!

Today the American team rode the train to the city of Valencia, another coastal city. Riding the train was fun, but I think we overwhelmed the Spaniards around us with our loud English. First we did a little shopping in the city and visited an old church. Then we visited the Lladró factory, where they make porcelain figures by hand. Very interesting, but I don´t think I would pay their prices. The process is quite detailed and performed by artists who train for years. We ate lunch at an American restaurant called Foster´s Hollywood, and the big deal that we were looking forward to all morning is that they give FREE refills--a big deal here! But I was disappointed because when we got there, they had Pepsi, not Coke! So I had water instead.  :(

Flowers on the plaza-a long row of vendors, just like in the movies

More shopping after dinner, and I think all our souvenirs have been purchased. The train ride home was interesting because we were trying to hop a 4:30 train, but turned out it was the arriving train, not the departing one, so we ended up inside the turnstiles where people board the trains a good 20 minutes before our time. Once you´re in, they won´t let you back out without paying again (although Elizabeth found out that if you go to security and explain that you really have to go to the bathroom because they rushed you to catch a train that wasn´t yours, they will allow for that!), so we just sat down on the floor to rest. By then we were sweaty from hurrying and exhausted from walking all over the city. Adding dirt from the train station floor just didn´t seem to matter.

Part of our team locked inside the boarding area, waiting patiently

At this point, we´re kind of in a holding pattern. Our work is done and we just have two days left in Alcoy. Some families are going to the beach tomorrow, but Susanna and I have planned a relaxing day in Alcoy. We plan for a late breakfast out, then a leisurely walk around town, maybe a bit of shopping, and a long nap in the afternoon. That sounds like a perfect last day to rest up before spending Sunday packing, weighing my suitcase, and repacking (most likely), then 16 hours of travel with the sun never setting on us until we are at home in our own beds!

Thank you for praying for us this month. Please continue to pray us home, and pray that the Lord will continue the good work He is doing in Alcoy, Spain. Phil. 1:6 Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. 



Make me a servant

This week we've been hard at work on Charlie and Inma's house. They are the couple who sewed with me during the children's English camp, and painting inside their apartment has been our main project these past two weeks (after helping rid them and their daughters of lice). I mentioned before that their 6 year old little girl is very sick and the doctors have given them almost no hope that she'll live much longer. Charlie has a bad heart and Inma has a physical limitation in her ability to walk. Charlie has been unemployed for 4 years and Inma cleans a business part time for a small income.

Nick has really taken the lead on this project and I'm so proud of the job he's doing. (Susanna, my hostess, said to me "Nick is special to you isn't he?" I said "Yeah, he is. Why do you mention it?" she said "You have affection for him and it shows when you talk to him-like a mother's.") He has identified needs around the house and has been almost completely in charge of the paint crew, working non-stop all morning every day and even going back in the evening on a couple of days

The team has filled in cracks in the plaster ceiling, spackled holes in the walls, moved furniture, painted every room in the house (walls and ceiling) and even added decorative stenciling, borders and lettering. We have tried hard to help them with the lice problem, but we're still not 100% sure that it's all cleared up so everyone who works there wears a bandanna tied around their head and shampoos with vinegar every night. I have been working at the church with some girls. We're using Carla's sewing machine to make curtains out of sheets for each of the bedrooms. The leftover pieces of sheets we had weren't quite big enough so we created somewhat of a patchwork effect to use small pieces to make full sized curtains.

Tomorrow we are sending the family to the beach (they haven't been able to afford to go in 5 years even though it's less than a half hour away) and while they're gone we're going to scrub the place and then put it all back together complete with new bedding and curtains. We can't wait to see their faces when we show them the finished product!
Some host families have been worried about the potential of us bringing lice into their house (understandably). It's a tough call for us to know how to deal with their concerns but overall the team has such servant hearts! I was reminded this morning that Jesus said, "Whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me." Some may see Charlie's family with their health problems, poverty and lice as the "least of these", but we know that Jesus took on the job of the lowest servant when he washed his own followers' feet, and it is His example we want to follow. If we get our hands dirty in the process, well, I guess that's a small price to pay for the blessing Charlie's family is receiving.

El Horario

I haven't written much yet about the Spanish schedule. I hear it's not the same in all parts of Spain but in Alcoy it's like this. The stores open at 9. I guess some businesses start earlier, like factories. They eat what seems to be a second breakfast around 11, then by 2 pm everyone quits work and goes home for dinner. They eat a big meal together as a family and then everyone takes a nap. They sleep until maybe 5, then they eat a snack before going back to work. The stores are almost all closed from 2-5, and you can't really do anything during siesta, so you might as well take one too! The stores close again at 9 pm and everyone goes home for supper. This meal is served in courses and can last as long as 3 hours! Around 12:30 in the morning, the neighborhood outside my window gets really noisy as people go out for walks and to visit on the street. Recently I drove past a park at 12:20 am and the playground was full of children playing and the benches and chairs were full of adults just hanging out visiting! I can't get my body to adjust to staying up that late, but I do appreciate siesta time!

Serving

English camp for children is over This week and next our mission is to help out in tangible ways to people who for whatever reason can't help themselves. Painting, yard work, cleaning and other such jobs are on our list. I'm glad that we are able to help my hostess Susanna, who is a single mother, because the building management of her apartment has been negligent in doing some work she needs done. They sent in a worker who started the job then left it half finished and didn't clean up after himself. So we plan to swoop in, do the job, and clean up--probably all in one morning. That's the beauty of having a good-sized team, even if we are mainly inexperienced. At least we are able-bodied and willing.
Besides this work, one of the families in the church has discovered lice! So we are helping to disinfect their house and to pick the nits from their hair. Carla has arranged for the little girls and mom to get free haircuts from a lady in the church and then our team will begin picking and cleaning!
The boys have moved donated furniture to some people who had no furniture in their house.
And in the midst of the work, we eat together, we talk, we laugh, and we discuss what God's will for each of us might be. Right now it's to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the people of Alcoy, Spain. Keep praying for us as we miss our families more each day. Pray for Mark and Carla as they minister tirelessly to their community. Their influence here is obvious and far-reaching. I love listening in as they "pastor" the American team as well. There are some real God conversations going on here, especially with the young people as God has them in a situation where they are depending solely on Him and listening for His voice.
In case you thought we were on a European vacation, think again! First off, if I were going on vacation, I would take my husband and kids, whom I miss dearly! Second, we are working very hard between a few enjoyable days off. Facebook posts usually only show pictures from our tourist experiences, but these are the exception not the rule. Most of all we are walking a very fine line of living our faith in our host homes without being offensive. It's not easy and it's not comfortable. But it's our main purpose here, and we pray that as we plant seeds and water, that God will give the increase.

Church family

An ocean between and two different languages but the history book I looked at with Edgar's family could have been from Rock Prairie. It recounted the 40-year history of the church in Alcoy. It was Edgar's great great grandmother who was the first Christian in Alcoy and who helped found the church here. They were still under the dictatorship of Franco, who abused religion to manipulate and control people and who required everyone to attend Catholic mass. (This weekend I saw a wall where he had people killed by a firing squad if they disagreed with him! And, incidentally, they were also not allowed to be buried in the cemetery.) The evangelicals here went obediently to mass on Sunday mornings to stay alive, but then met in secret on Sunday nights. They continue the habit of meeting on Sunday nights even though now they are free to pursue their own religion. In the history book, they have recorded the weddings, baptisms, children's programs, socials, holiday events and more. In the pictures you could see the families grow up and a few pages later it was their children on the stage. A large part of the church is related, having descended from three sisters who are currently matriarchs in the church. But others have joined and, just like at home, the church is their family.
The pastor, Pedro, has been part-time pastor at two churches. The other is in a coastal city more than an hour away. He preaches there in the mornings and then at Alcoy in the night. Tonight he announced that the other church has called him to be full time so he'll be moving his family there. The business meeting was just beginning as we were leaving and already there were tears. Monte Sion is the only evangelical church in this city. Certainly God has been faithful these 40 years and will continue to be, but as we know, finding a new pastor is a difficult process, even in a country where there are churches everywhere you look. Mark and Carla, though Pedro and Maria Jesus are their dear friends, will stay with the church to try to help them through this difficult time. Pray for the church in Alcoy.

Sewing class

When Carla asked me to come work at English camp, I understood that it was like a Bible school set up without the Bible since it's partially sponsored by the city. When I (finally) said yes, I said "I really don't want to chase small kids around." So Carla gave me the job of hanging out with parents who wanted to wait for their children during the camp. With the help of my mom and donations of fabric from Rachelle, I took supplies to teach them how to quilt. They call it patchwork (though it sounds more like "pash-welk" when they say it).
We started with 2 parents, a couple. The dad is an American named Charlie who has lived in Spain for some 30 years. They have a young daughter who was born with serious health issues. They told me that the doctor said not to be surprised on any given morning if they wake up to find her dead! I'm not sure of all the health problems but I know she has a hole in her heart, some brain issues, and doesn't walk well. Charlie has been out of work for four years and struggles with depression as a result, understandably. He told Carla that quilting in English camp has given him a reason to get up in the mornings! He's really good at it too! Now he's trying to figure out how he can start some kind of business around this new hobby. Others who have become regular attenders are Maria Jesús, the pastor's wife, and her mother, my hostess Susanna and her daughter, Elizabeth's host father, Felo, who is currently out of work, and 2 or 3 others who drop in periodically.
I took patterns for Grandmother's Flower Garden and Cathedral Windows quilt projects. The people here are strong willed and creative, though, and after being taught the basics, they have created their own unique patterns and projects.
As I have taught them the basics of quilting, they have taught me the vocabulary of sewing--words like needle, pins, stitch and baste are new to me. They seem to take pleasure in teaching me and often take the time to write down new words and repeat them until I can say it to their satisfaction.
The mornings are so easy and relaxing for me that I feel I'm not really contributing to the camp. But then I remember that our purpose here is to build relationships and to share God's love. If not for the hours spent quilting, would I have ever known about Charlie's little girl, whom they said would not live more than 5 years but is now 6? Would I know that one of my new friends is a recent widow who has had to move to Alcoy because she couldn't stay alone in the bigger city and that she misses her husband dearly? Would I know that Elizabeth's host family can't even bear to think of this month ending because they love her so much? Just because I'm having a blast doesn't mean the Lord's purposes aren't being accomplished. Psalm 37:4
Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart.