Adios, Estados Unidos

I head out for Guatemala in the morning. This is probably the scariest thing I've ever done, but I'm not as freaked out as I thought I might be. Oh, there's trepidation there, don't get me wrong, but I'm fairly calm. The most stress I've had tonight is when I couldn't find one of my socks (these are no ordinary socks, mind you, they're $9 REI wool hiking socks). Turns out, puppies like to steal your belongings and take them to far corners of the house. I've found my sock, and it's no worse for the wear. I think the fact that such a trivial thing has caused the greatest stress of the night is a good sign: the Lord has granted me a great deal of peace about this trip. Much of that peace, I believe, has come from all you people who happen to be reading this (and some who aren't). Your prayers, good wishes, surprise parties (my fantastic UNC friends threw me a going-away party a week and a half ago), and assurances have calmed my nerves more than you realize. The fact that I have such great support is a good thing to be reminded of as I leave on this first great adventure of my life.

Actually, over the past day and a half, it's been the reverse of what I expected to happen; I've gotten much more excited about this and much less nervous. By now, I'm thrilled at the opportunity I have over the next few months to serve with a man who, from what I've read about his programs and his life, truly understands and lives out what it means to extend God's grace to his community and to love self-sacrificially as we're called. Check out what I'm talking about: www.cccguatemala.com and projectguatemala.wordpress.com

I think that's a big motivator for my going on this trip. I want to be a part of this action of grace and to learn from what he's doing. When people ask me what made me take a semester off to do this, I usually give them a pretty simple answer about logistics and the cool things about Guatemala. The main reason, though, is that I'm tired of the selfishness that I feel forced into while I'm at school. College isn't a bad place, necessarily, but it's a place that's all about the individual. I'm there to get good grades so I can have a great future for myself, and to have the most fun I can while doing it. Not everybody struggles in such an environment. Some can be truly selfless and loving even as everything around them tells them to care about numero uno. I can't. And that's a big reason for my trip. I don't think the answer comes from Guatemala, though; it has to come from Christ. I just hope that he uses Guatemala as a means to shape me into his image.

So, please pray that the Lord uses this experience to teach me a little bit about what it means to display a self-sacrificing love. And pray especially for me to learn how to bring this back to an environment that seems so against it.

I hope you're all doing well. Stay in touch while I'm away. I can't promise I'll answer your e-mails (not sure how much computer time I'll have or how many e-mails I'll have to answer). I can promise that I'll read them and be comforted by news from home.

Que Dios te bendiga,
Daniel