My mom has always said that patience is not a virtue she owns. She quite possibly hates to wait more than any other human being I know. I wouldn't say that I hate waiting quite as much as her. I was given a little more patience than she will ever have probably. However, I do not enjoy waiting either. I don't like waiting in lines at amusement parks. I don't like waiting in lines at the bank (I rarely go to the bank anymore, however). I don't like waiting on Kelci to get ready, though she usually is pretty much ready when I am. And I especially do not like waiting on red lights; red arrows particularly. Most red arrows are unnecessary in my opinion...but that's for another day. Waiting is a part of life and as Tom Petty says in one of his songs: (who I saw in concert at Red Rocks on my 14th birthday, it was awesome!)...Waiting is the Hardest Part.
Kelci and I are at a time in our life when waiting is all we can really do. We are waiting to leave for Brazil and we really cannot do anything about it. Our current departure date is February 18th, meaning that we have 49 days until we leave. All we can do is wait. In the mean time, we are waiting to hear back on our Visas. We cannot do anything to help speed the process along. Again, all we can do is wait. We have had to wait on churches getting back to us at times. We have had to wait on support answers. We have had to wait more than we would like to throughout this whole process and it has been frustrating at times. However, I am beginning to believe that all this waiting is simply God preparing us.
Last February, Kelci and I visited Brazil, the church we are going to work with and the team we will be joining. It was a great experience (obviously)! We were told numerous times that people in Brazil move at their own pace. It is just a cultural thing. They are not nearly as concerned about time or pace. We experienced this right away when we arrived at the airport in Rio. We met up with Brent, who was picking us up from the airport and he kindly offered to get us a drink. He ordered 4 drinks at a little shop; 1 bottled water, 2 soft drinks and an orange juice I believe. That would probably take about 30 seconds to purchase and walk away with here in the states. However, we waited for about 5 minutes before Brent was able to pay (there was no line). It was our first cultural experience in Brazil and these types of things occurred semi-often throughout the trip. This may kill my mom when she comes to visit us. We have been told that we can expect to wait much more in Brazil. We've been told that waiting in line at the bank (which I have to go to there) can take an hour or more. People just wait more there. We better get used to it.
If we could be in Brazil this week, we would be ecstatic. We are just ready to get there and begin our work there. However, we are having to be patient and we are trying to see it as a blessing. We are using this time to spend with family and friends. We are using this time to prepare ourselves more for the work and for the culture and for the language. We are using this time to prepare ourselves to wait...and wait...and wait some more while living in Brazil. I think God is using this time of waiting to prepare us. To prepare us for His work there. To prepare us to be content with the time we are given. To prepare us to be more patient. And to prepare us to be better about how we use the time spent waiting. I know they'll be moments of frustration while in Brazil...but this time of waiting now just may be a blessing in the future. After all, patience is a virtue.
"Therefore, as God's chose people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." - Col. 3:12
"Therefore, as God's chose people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience." - Col. 3:12
Thank you for your continued prayers and support! We couldn't do this without your prayers, support and encouragement!
--Kelly and Kelci
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