I Can Hear Mexico Calling
Following the call as a YAGM through the ELCA
Only four days till the church season, advent, leading up to Christmas. I adore the season of advent! It feels like a season of honesty, of embracing the anticipation and the uncertainty of life while holding hope at the forefront. I need advent in my life. Actually, I think I live in a constant season of advent, always preparing myself and longing to feel God’s presence in day-to-day life.
Today marks being in Mexico for 100 days, and I am overwhelmed by the number of joys and pains that I have been witness to. My mind is flooded with questions and it feels like the waves are washing away any possible answers rather than helping them take root. The current leads me to wonder about why so much pain exists in the world and leads me down a whirl pool where I wrestle with the nature of God and humanity. The saltwater stings my mind’s eye as I try to understand why we still struggle so much to love our neighbor. And my tears just get lost in the sea. This overwhelming ocean is made up of my questions and lamentations regarding poverty, sickness, substance abuse, and loneliness, silence, intervention, and the way people and governments treat asylum seekers, hate, fear, and vocation. One hundred days ago, I dove into this ocean of anticipation and uncertainty and I am barely treading water. For the past few weeks I have been wallowing in spiritual angst. And I think that’s ok. If anything is true about my faith, it is not complacent or easy. However, the problem with wallowing for so long in angst and indignation is that I stopped feeling hopeful. My eyes have been stinging for so long that I stopped seeing Emmanuel. When I say Emmanuel, I am referring to more than just God’s life on Earth in human form as Jesus. Emmanuel means “God with us,” so I believe that the good news of Emmanuel is about all the ways in which God is present in our lives yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I’m sure that I will continue to wallow in the depths of uncertainty, but in this season of advent, I am committed to looking for Emmanuel each day in Mexico, in Canton, Ohio, and wherever else we might experience God’s self.
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AuthorMy name is Kathryn Ophardt. I am spending this year in Mexico City as a Young Adult for Global Mission with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. During this year of service, I'll be working with the non-profit, Casa Refugiados. Archives
October 2018
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