Greetings everyone….Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you…. On this last day of 2019 I wanted to share something that God has put on my heart. I hope you find it as comforting and encouraging as I did.
In July 20, 2019 the lake behind my childhood home (where my parents still live) flooded due to extreme amounts of rain, and then the unthinkable happened. Part of the road that was a dam to keep the water in gave way and all the water emptied from the lake. Families were stranded on the other side of the lake in their homes because the only road out was washed away. The back yard of a home near the breach was washed away and the home was then deemed structurally unsafe to return to and had to be demolished. It was devastating to hear this news. To see the pictures. To hear the stories of my hometown. I was so sad…grieving the loss of the lake that held so many memories of my childhood and even as an adult carried special memories including the most beautiful sunrise the day of Clever and I’s wedding.
But just like most events that are considered disasters, the positive was to see the entire community come together to support those stranded. It was comforting to hear and read the stories on social media from afar. After 4 long months the road was rebuilt, and the families returned to their homes. The one thing that remained was that the lake was still empty because they put in 2 very large drain pipes where the breach initially happened. This changed the entire trajectory of the small current that flows through that area…. From what I heard, that meant no hope to refill the lake at any point.
For me, that meant more grieving. Knowing that it will never look the same as it was. That all you would see now is emptiness…. Honestly, that was incredibly sad to me. BUT THEN I had the opportunity to go back to visit my parents for a week in early December. The night I arrived it started to snow and the next morning I woke up with a blanket of beautiful snow everywhere. I decided to walk around the lake to see what it looked like now in person. To say goodbye to the way it was before…
As I was walking, I saw signs of the life it held before the flood. Boats docked on dry land. People with fishing equipment now unused…..and then the empty space of the house that had to be demolished. A house I used to walk by every singe time I would make that route. I was sad. But then, as I got to the bridge to look over the entire lake, something I had done so many times in my life, God showed me something new….He showed me that there was still water running in that lake…LIVING WATER. A small channel of water that filtered through the middle of the now dry lake. My heart was SO happy!!! God spoke to me in that moment saying, it may seem dead, but there is still LIFE. Don’t you see the living water that is passing through? Yes, it is NOT the same as it was before, but it has taken on a new form and it still brings LIFE. Just wait and see…
You see this year has been a lot like this lake to many people, including me. Maybe like me, you are grieving the loss of something, someone, or the way it used to be. This year has been a weird year with a lot of changes in our lives. Some that we had hoped for and others that we didn’t. But in that moment when God reminded me of His presence…. His living water even though it is in a different form, gave me a peace and a joy for what is to come in this next year.
So, this is what I imagine….in the springtime, there will be new life and growth on that lake. Maybe the wildflowers that once were along the banks of the lake in the field near our house will now venture out into the middle of the lake. Maybe it will be a home for many creatures who are looking for that water to drink. In summer, I can see full grass out there that is so green that maybe it will not be a place that the geese come to float on the water but will be a grazing place for other forms of life. In fall, the same trees that surrounded the lake with their beautiful changing colors will still be there. Surrounding the beautiful field that was once green and is now a golden color…still with the living water running through it.
When I imagine what the new area behind my parents’ house will be like from now on, I don’t grieve…because I now see new life. A chance to grow and have something new take place. As we end 2019 and enter 2020, I am choosing to look for growth from what has taken place in 2019. Will you join me?
Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing: now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:18-19 ESV
But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. Isaiah 43:18-19 NLT
Thank you for all who have supported us through prayer and finances this past year. We feel blessed by your generosity. Because we are missionaries with the church, we do not receive a paid salary. We are only able to be here doing what we get to do because of the generosity of others who believe in what we are doing here serving the population of people with disabilities in Peru. There is still time to make an end of the year donation that is completely tax deductible, or you can make a commitment to support us in 2020. We are so excited to see how this next year will be! Please consider joining us! Information on how you can do that is on our blog page marked FAQ. Thank you and God Bless you all.
