Update?

I have been putting off posting for a couple of reasons. One being that I am aware that next to no one reads anything here (not a complaint, just an acknowledgement of reality). And those who do read posts here are generally folks who I update through other forms anyway. The second reason, and probably the more controlling of the two, is the fact that I find it difficult to have any real "updates". That is to say, what I do day-in and day-out changes very little, is likely of little excitement to anyone, and very non-missionary-ish to the public at large.

I have a number of friends who serve in a variety of different ministries both here in Guatemala and around the world, and I try to stay updated with their work. When I read what they have to share, I am painfully aware that my work is not theirs. And I'm not trying to compare or say some missions are more important than others; we are all doing our part to advance the Kingdom. But let's be honest, there are certain activities that people want to read about and be a part of; those that seem like true missions. Things such as building wells and houses and churches; providing medical services; evangelizing; feeding people; being there when people give their lives over to Jesus. Those are all huge and exciting things! And they are all activities that people can take pictures of and show others back home and get them to rally behind. They are activities that others can point to and say: "There's a mission! There are missionaries working hard for Jesus! There are people serving others! Look what they've done/made/fixed/etc!"

Then there is what I do.

Three days a week, I sit in a small office and try to help students, most of whom have no desire to be there, remember the different sounds the letter /a/ can make (again), or discuss why they have so many missing assignments (again), or look over goals that, regardless of how hard they've tried, they haven't met (again). I am NOT trying to say that what I do isn't important. I KNOW it is. I'm not trying to elicit a sympathetic response. There's nothing to sympathize with. I'm not trying to say that I'm not a "real" missionary. I have no doubt that I've been called by God to use the gifts that he's given me to be a small part of a select number of lives. But what I am trying to say is, from a missions standpoint, I have very few photo opportunities and even fewer "updates". So if you're wondering what I've done lately or what I'm doing or what I have to show, all I can say is: I'm just busy keeping on keeping on.