Finding Joy Doing the Small Things

     I think that when most people climb on the plane for the first time and head to the field the expectations of doing huge and great things for God is strong. I know that for myself that was what I was hoping for because why else would God call my family here, right?  Then when we actually landed and started to live among the people and get to know them I began to really notice things around me. What the people viewed as big and important things in their eyes was very different to what my North America view was. That first year of language school was so eye opening to me as I saw God allowing me to learn how to witness in a very different way. I learned about the power of a smile, the importance of always looking someone in the eye, and that I could show love by just walking into someones home and being completely comfortable even if all there was was a small rug on the floor. On saw people eyes light up when I let then take a picture with me as it seemed that I have just given them the greatest treasure around. That first year I saw a group of people who really just wanted to be noticed, cared about, and that they just wanted to be loved.
     I felt like God was showing me that there is great power in the small things (not that big things don't matter) and not to stress out about trying to always tackle the large items. For you see even though He was showing me this that first year I was still stressing myself out by trying to do everything all at the same time. When I arrived here to Papua is where I finally let myself go (which is not easy for me) and follow His daily schedule and throw my list away. I found myself looking for those small things that would pop up through out the day that I could do for someone like allowing children to my berry bushes, talking with the local people who come to my door, keeping in eye on Facebook to see if any of my teammates where having a bad day. You would not believe the power of joy until you see first hand the smile on a child's face because I gave them a treat. Or when you surprise a teammate with a snack for their family and a coke to help them make it through the day. Or offering to drive someone around so they could do some shopping instead of having to walk all over the city.
     So most days I find myself looking for the small things that I could do with my family, friends, and neighbors. I find pure joy out of surprising someone with a small thing that just really helped make their day better. I love going to the same stores over and over and getting to know the people and watch the small relationship grow. They start to relax around you and then start asking small questions about your children, and last week I learned that one lady actual speaks very good English even though we had just been speaking in Indonesian. I have saw my relationship with my children get stronger as well which has been a neat to have.
     It makes me wonder about how many small things did I miss back home as I was rushing through the grocery store as fast as I could. And who could I have blessed by just looking them in the eye and greeting them that day. I hope that this is a lesson that I never forget because there is great power in the small things and I can share Christ's joy around my world when I slow down and really look.