Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself.

So its been awhile since my last blog, but there are good reasons why it has taken me so long to post.  Last time I posted I talked about our last trip for the summer to Guayana.  It was there that I had an accident.  I fell down some stairs and broke my ankle.  The first doctor I saw told me that I needed an operation, and that I had to go back to Maracaibo to get it done.  Guayana is about 24 hours driving from Maracaibo, so thank God that we were able to get plane tickets, and I had the surgery a couple of weeks later.  The surgery/hospital stay in Venezuela was an experience…I’ll just leave it at that.   This was my first stay ever at a hospital in my life, and of course it had to be in a foreign country.  If you ever want to hear some funny stories just ask me about it in person.  

The hardest part about this whole process has been recovery.  It takes so long to recover from a broken ankle.  I’m still unable to walk.  Its been three months.  Two of the three months I had to be on bed rest, because of an infection I acquired during the operation.  Now, that my ankle is healing well, I’m waiting another operation, possibly in December, to take out all of the metal, so that I will be able to walk.  I’ve learned so much through this experience, even though its not over yet.  I’ve learned that I have an amazing family in Venezuela.  Hebert and his family have treated me like a queen since the accident.  Our church family is always keeping in touch with us, dropping by to visit, sending prayers, and sending food.   They’ve really been a blessing.  

The most valuable lessons I have learned are the ones that God has taught me about my character.  Going through this hardship has clearly shown me my character flaws and the idols that I cling to.  That’s why we go through times of pain and suffering.  It teaches us about ourselves.  I found that even though I say that my goal in life is to be like Christ…I fight against it whenever its put into action.  I don’t like to humbled.  I’m a prideful person, and even though I’ve rejected a lot of my comforts I still expect them.  There’s a verse that helps remind me to not fight the humbling process, but to welcome it…to let go of seeking comfort and trust that God is enough…and to not focus on the past, but the present.  That verse is Philippians 2: 5-8:  Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself.  He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what.  Not at all.  When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human!  Having become human, he stayed human.  It was an incredibly humbling process.  He didn’t claim special privileges.  Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death --- and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion. (MES)  

This verse shows me what a stark contrast Christ’s values are compared with the world’s.  Our culture values power, independence, prestige, and wealth.  Humility is often not valued.  It is seen as a weakness.  But the world has got it wrong, and all that it offers is just a lie.  True love, power, and freedom are experienced through humility.  Through submitting oneself to Christ and allowing him to be Lord over their life.  You’ll find that He is enough and all of the world’s riches, its comfort, its security --- mean nothing compared to knowing Him.  

Please be praying for my family in the US.  A close family member of ours has cancer, his name is Chet, and in the past couple of days has not been doing well.  It looks like these are his final days.  Please be praying for his family, and especially for his wife, Kay.