Victoria, The World Racer

So, what does my life look like now?

My life looks like team meals, every meal.  It looks like flushing our only toilet with a bucket and bucket showers next to the toilet.  (Yes, I currently shower by filling up a bucket with cold water, then dip a cup into the water repeatedly to rinse off my body.)  In turn, our team has created a “spa day” every four days to wash each others’ hair in buckets as well.  Life looks like quarantining in every new place.  It looks like lots of manual labor, community building and restoration, and very little alone-time.  It often times looks like no wifi, no clean drinking water (except when we clean it), and no beds.

Here in Chichicastengo, we are still in quarantine, but soon we will be able to serve in community ministry here!  

Each morning I wake up next to six other girls, all of us bundled up in our sleeping bags.  I make my way outside and have my beloved quiet time with the Lord as I stare out over the gorgeous Guatamalan mountains and the vast valley that is before me.  The view is absolutely stunning.  I’ve been writing a lot here during my quiet time, and the Lord has taught me a lot about pride, joy, and humility.  He has taken some serious idols and burdens from me and redirected my thinking in HUGE ways.  

After quiet time is breakfast where my team and our sister team eat together.  Our amazing hosts make us pancakes, eggs and toast, or give us cereal with fruit.  Oh, and y’all, there’s coffee flowing abundantly each and every morning.

After breakfast, I usually continue my quiet time and/or writing space. 

Then, we begin our day of labor.  So far we have bagged dirt to save for the rainy season, built doors, rebuilt doors, painted doors and doorframes (we built those too), plastered walls, dug trenches and a water storage hole, unloaded cinderblocks (a lot of them), and mixed concrete.  We are currently building a outdoor room that will contain heat since the current kitchen setup for us is outside. 

After our labor each day, my friends and I workout.  Courtney and I lead a workout class.  (We don’t have any clients in our class yet, so we just pretend like we’re leading a workout class while our peers laugh at us.)  

For dinner, our hosts make us the best food.  They recently made us their homemade tamales.  My favorite thing they’ve made us thus far are pupusas (cheese-filled corn tortillas).  Y’all. These are like mana from heaven filled with doughy, cheesy goodness. YUM.

Then, after dinner, we have team time, where we share our hearts (usually our snacks too), give each other feedback, and talk about Jesus! 

While life here on the field looks like abandonment and little to no luxuries, I am filled with joy.  (In fact, when I’ve gotten wifi and facetimed my family, they’ve commented on how happy I look.)  God is so good.  Every day, I am surrounded with the Lord’s presence and peace; I have the luxuries of freely worshipping the God I love, of having a full belly, and of getting to serve others for the glory of Jesus.

Our host family has very little; they live a simple life and serve the Lord.  And yet, they are filled with such immense joy–joy that brings me to tears every time they speak of the Lord’s goodness.  Rarely do I see Americans, with all our luxuries, with such joy.

No matter what leisures I have (or don’t have) in life, I want to choose joy.  I want to love life, no matter where the Lord places me.  Life isn’t worse when we have less; it’s different; sometimes it’s better.  

This I know: The Lord is good, and He loves His kids.  

“Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses.. Oh, that you would choose life so that you and your descendants might live!  You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and committing yourself firmly to him.  This is the key to your life.” -Deuteronomy 30:19-20