| Finally Updated |
| Written by B.J. Murrey | |||
| Tuesday, 18 August 2009 00:00 | |||
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It's been a while since my last update. "Quite overdue" doesn't begin to describe just how late it is. So here we go! Firstly, what a year 2009 has proved to be (as in not at all like I had hoped or expected)! Engaged in January and "un-engaged" on April 3rd. The pastor of the church that I had been attending and investing in and working with to begin a project in Guatemala left on short notice after a couple of issues with a couple of people in the congregation (an unfortunately common occourance in small churches regardless of culture or nation). 2 friends died. 1 assaulted. The list goes on. None-the-less (but without minimizing the great impact of any one of those aforementioned things) things keep on moving at home in the USA, in Guatemala, and the world. All of this became quite overwhelming to me, since it was all going on simultaneously. I was spent, drained and needed a reprieve - even if just for a moment. Since I had been planning on being married as of the moment I'm writing this, I admittedly did a poor job of connecting myself much beyond "work" in Guatemala, and this proved unwise. I needed to be refueled badly, and with the agreement of my new pastor in Guatemala and my boss at World Orphans, I returned to the USA for a stint. Spending July just getting recharged & meeting with my closest friends, I entered August with a renewed sense of determination and encouragement. Mostly I owe this to my church who was to me like a cool drink of water in their care and friendships. It is because of their continuous prayers and moral support that I feel so encouraged and renewed. And as August began, I paid a short visit to a man from Guatemala (currently in Little Rock, AR) who is my down-the-street neighbor in Guatemala City, whom I had never previously met. His church is one of the last contacts I made before departing Guatemala, and is a portion of a larger organization that I am looking forward to possibly working with at some point in the future in the areas of orphan care, prevention and delay. I have missed Guatemala. I am looking forward to working with a church who is already well established in their community helping to reach the poor, abandoned and abused. I am looking forward to the next chapter of ministry in my life - chapter 2 I will call it - as I am again finding myself in a position to be able to cooperate with others who are equally as passionate about the Gospel, the Church and caring for orphans as we all are at World Orphans. Thank you to all who have been praying for me during this most-difficult time of my life over the last year. Thank you to all who have been financially supporting me throughout the sending, arriving, and enduring phases of the first portion of my time in Guatemala. Thank you to all who continue to enable me to work in the region (don't forget things keep moving along in Nicaragua too!) by your prayers, and encouragement and financial support.
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