Shifting of our Personal Focus

While we were waiting outside of a food distribution center, ready to pass out food to children and their parents, I was taking that time to gather my thoughts on how the service had gone earlier in the afternoon. At that moment I looked down at my feet and at first I noticed the dirt on my shoes and jeans, and I was thinking about the beads of sweat that were forming on my forehead. 

Then something shifted my focus. I noticed shards of glass laying in the dirt. Then I noticed a nail mixed in with the dirt. In fact, I noticed the glass and nails quite often in the dirt where these children played all the time. This made me think of all the comforts I have back in the U.S. I don't have to worry about about stepping on shards of glass or nails with my bare feet. Those little pieces of trash shifted my focus from how things were affecting me to how life has affected the people here in Nicaragua. This was a good reminder to me that life is not about us on this trip, although we do get ministered to and God works in our hearts during this time, most importantly it's about the people that we are here to show our love to.

* By Bethanne Milton