Thursday, March 5, 2009

This Lenten Journey

"Therefore, behold, I will allure her;
I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her.¨
Hosea 2:14
Peace of Christ to you all as we have embarked on this Lenten Journey 2009. I’ll admit, as a child I always thought Lent was forty days of ‘gloom and doom’, but as I have grown in the faith, I’ve come to recognize it as a call to intimacy with the Lord…as a beckoning towards His heart. This, of course, requires a candid evaluation of what keeps us from answering this call. And if we are truly honest with ourselves, we recognize that the very things we are most attached to are those that we must give up - not because chocolate, TV, and coffee are in and of themselves evil - but because somehow along the way, we´ve let these things give us more satisfication than the Lord. Thus we are challenged to give up these things for a time, to truly empty ourselves, so as to gain He who is everything, He who is all-satisfying. We find ourselves asking, “Really, Lord, I have to give up ____?” and then we see his nail-pierced hands, his head crowned with thorns, and his bleeding heart and we are shamed. Shamed that He gave his entire body and soul for us, and we find ourselves unwilling to offer up just one TRUE attachment (not just the ´easiest´ one to give up). We are too often unwilling to make one true sacrifice…even if for only these forty days.

Here in Ecuador, I can sometimes pridefully believe that I have already sacrificed so much in abandoning the comforts of an American life, like warm water and nutritious meals. Yet, I find that my heart is still in need of purification, of sacrifice and of an exodus back to my Creator. And thus I´m making ammends to my Lenten resolutions as I write this, determined to be more honest with myself and my own attachments. May we all respond to the grace that is offered to us in these forty days, that we may arrive at the celebration of His Resurrection having been resurrected and renewed ourselves.



An Ecuadorian Sunset to remind us that after every sunset comes the dawning of a new day...resurrection!

As for daily life at the Santuario, we are getting geared up for a new school year, which will begin in April. We are starting a new program with the Santuario which could be likened unto a boarding school. In the past few weeks, I’ve accompanied the educational psychologist to invite youth of the surrounding towns to come live and study at the Santuario, as the daily commute would be too great, or even impossible during the rainy season. Most of these kids would have no other opportunity to continue their education, as their families are extremely poor and with little recourse. A handful of these teens just arrived yesterday to take a preparatory class for the upcoming three weeks, so that they are caught up to speed for the next school year. Most of them are 12 and 13 years old, wide-eyed and innocent, timid and uncertain…and absolutely precious. Surely, for the majority of them, it is their first time away from their families…and that must be quite unnerving.

Thus, if all goes as planned, it looks as though I’ll be doing an intake session with each of them to collect their complete history. From there, I’ll have a minimum of three individual counseling sessions with each teen, so as to help them acclimate to life at the Santuario. Lately, I’ve been translating a lot of counseling forms from English to Spanish, and collecting resources (thanks to Rose and Dr. Milburn) as I couldn’t bring a lot of my own books and notes from the U.S. This week, I’m hoping to arrange and decorate my office space; to create an inviting atmosphere for the teens so they won’t dread coming to see me! haha. I think I’ll be needing a candy jar! I’m also hoping to collaborate with the nearby towns to offer counseling sessions free of charge to adults and teens who don’t attend school at the Santuario. It is a slow process to establish such projects in the mental health field down here, but there’s a lot of promise on the near horizon.I am learning patience like never before, as a year-long mission is quite different than a 1-week, or even 1-month mission. I’ve realized that, unlike short-term missions when you arrive and every second of your day is already planned for you, a long-term mission involves planning, waiting, and watching the development and unraveling of projects in which you’re involved. In many ways, it is a more active share in the reality of the people and mission in which you serve, yet there are those days when you feel like you’re getting absolutely nowhere! It is then that I have to celebrate the little victories and truly seek to do small things with great love. Someone once said that you must be patient with yourself and persistent with God. And so I attempt to emulate the spirit of Mother Teresa, who confidently said,

“God can use you to accomplish great things, on the condition that you believe more in His love than in your own weakness. Only then can He count onyou.”

Oh, that in this season of Lent, we would look more towards His Heart and believe that it is through His love that we find hope to become the best version of ourselves. Prayers and blessings to you all…until next time

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Johanna, we are touched by your reflections and are praying for your work. It is fascinating for me (Susie) to see how you are putting your counseling skills to good use. Thanks for the lenten challenge too.
Peace and blessings.
Susie & Bill Weiss

Amber said...

My Sweet Joji,
Just wanted to let you know we love and miss you! It is such a blessing to read your words. You continue to call me on to holiness and speak to my heart even when we are hundred of miles apart. I am so proud of you and so proud to be your sister! Continueing on our lenten journey I will be thinking of you and uniting my heart to yours in our Lady's.
Please pray for me... on my own little mission here, i miss ewe my sister. Sophia is getting so big... and sometimes, most times, i worry that i'm not the perfect mom or wife, you know how i wish to be! Dan says Jesus doesnt care that we're perfect, just that we keep trying. Well, even thats hard sometimes! I am thinking of you as I struggle and press on, I know you are working and struggling as well. In joys and sorrows, we are sisters in the Lamb. I am praying for you too! I wish I could know your heart right now. I know it's stretching and growing! Ah... its so beautiful what you are doing!
Anyway, I'm sending snuggles your way. I love ewe.
Love in the Lamb,
berber