By Jackson Smith
As my week in Cozumel is coming to a close there is one verse that comes to mind.
At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: " Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command.
-- 1 Kings 18:36
This is one of my favorite verses and a prayer I pray often especially when service is on my heart. This prayer from Elijah is said right before God sends fire down to light his alter. Even though the context of the prayer isn't too relatable, the thought itself is very powerful. For me, it says that God is the only true God at Lipscomb, in Cozumel, and everywhere in between and it is our job as followers of Christ to let that be known to all. And we do that in many ways including service. Everything we do should be "at His command." I prayed this throughout the week which has really helped me keep focus.
Probably one of the biggest lessons I've learned here is that sometimes God calls us to serve in different ways than we expect to. I came to Cozumel expecting to play with the kids, which I did quite a lot. But God was able to use me to help clean one of the houses during work project, which was more of a blessing to Ciudad than I could've realized. This is just one of the many examples of this new realization I've come to which I will carry on for the rest of my life.
But the bonds I've created with the kids and staff of Ciudad are ones that have grown larger than I could've imagined! They have taught me so much and I just hope that I was able to bring a small portion of the incredible joy that they were able to give me! There are so many stories and points I could make about the children of Ciudad. In the end though that joy that they all have is simply contagious. Their contentment and innocence is something that makes you want to strive to grow closer to them and to God. And I pray in the future weeks, months, and years that I will be able to do just that.
As my week in Cozumel is coming to a close there is one verse that comes to mind.
At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: " Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command.
-- 1 Kings 18:36
This is one of my favorite verses and a prayer I pray often especially when service is on my heart. This prayer from Elijah is said right before God sends fire down to light his alter. Even though the context of the prayer isn't too relatable, the thought itself is very powerful. For me, it says that God is the only true God at Lipscomb, in Cozumel, and everywhere in between and it is our job as followers of Christ to let that be known to all. And we do that in many ways including service. Everything we do should be "at His command." I prayed this throughout the week which has really helped me keep focus.
Probably one of the biggest lessons I've learned here is that sometimes God calls us to serve in different ways than we expect to. I came to Cozumel expecting to play with the kids, which I did quite a lot. But God was able to use me to help clean one of the houses during work project, which was more of a blessing to Ciudad than I could've realized. This is just one of the many examples of this new realization I've come to which I will carry on for the rest of my life.
But the bonds I've created with the kids and staff of Ciudad are ones that have grown larger than I could've imagined! They have taught me so much and I just hope that I was able to bring a small portion of the incredible joy that they were able to give me! There are so many stories and points I could make about the children of Ciudad. In the end though that joy that they all have is simply contagious. Their contentment and innocence is something that makes you want to strive to grow closer to them and to God. And I pray in the future weeks, months, and years that I will be able to do just that.