sweet potatoes and thankfulness

Colossians 2:6-7 

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.   

This week, I had the privilege of spending several days in a village with a wonderful group of people.  In just our short amount of time there, we were welcomed whole-heartedly into the community and shown love, grace, hospitality, and generosity.  We also had several opportunities to share our testimonies or something on our heart.  On Tuesday evening, the four of us split up to go to different small groups hosted by church members.  My group started with singing and after the first song one of the gals who hosted us during our time in the village leaned over to tell me that I was supposed to share the message after the singing.  In Tok Pisin.  My mind frantically started racing about what I could share on such short notice and how on earth I was going to do that in Tok Pisin without any preparation.   

The first passage I thought about was Colossians 2:6-7.  These verses are what I would call my life verses.  Seventeen years ago, my parents started praying these verses for me and when I graduated from high school my mom gave me a prayer journal with these verses and others written in the front.  I’ve been so encouraged through these verses that when asked to share, that’s what came to mind.  

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.   

Live a life centered around your Savior!  Put your roots deep into His Word and absorb His nutrients so that when the storms of life come you stand fast and don’t blow over.  Let His strength make you strong and remember the lessons that He speaks into your heart.  And live your life in thanks of the sacrifice of your Savior.    

After I shared, one of the elderly gentlemen present started to speak.  Our hostess leaned over to me and told me that he and the other elderly gentleman next to him were both village elders.  I’m thankful I didn’t know that before I spoke because it probably would have made me a lot more nervous, but as I listened to his words I was taken aback by the way God works.   

You see, that morning we had gone to work in a garden with one of the church members.  One of our group had asked if anyone had a garden that we could help with during our time in the village and this lady was getting ready to plant a field of kaukau (sweet potatoes).  We arrived at the garden and she was the only one working.  She looked at our group and dropped her hoe to go get more for us to use.  I took the first turn and picked up the hoe she had dropped and tried to mimic the pattern she left.  We were making small mountains in rows to plant the sprouts into; these mountains of dirt are the best way to protect the plant from the plentiful heat.  A few swings into my work, my arms were screaming at me.  The past few months of sickness have precluded a lot of physical activity and my body was telling me in no uncertain terms that this work was a shock.  We took turns and before long more people started coming with garden tools.  Handing off the hoe to another worker, I took a break and looked around at the group which had grown to fourteen men and women using six hoes to prepare the field for planting.  It had become a group effort and instead of this one woman spending hours and hours working alone, we spent an hour and a half to finish the plot of ground.   

This garden happened to be right along the side of  major road and as cars drove they slowed to a crawl.  People hung out of windows, pointing, laughing, and shouting for others to look.  The expatriates were working in the garden right alongside the locals.  At first, we felt self-conscious as one after another person started laughing at both the unexpected sight, but also the way we were struggling with work that is natural for so many of them.  Word got around the community and by that evening everyone in the village, from corner to corner, was talking about the way that we had worked together.   

The village elder shared that the community was impacted by the morning.  He said that our actions showed them that we were putting ourselves on the same level by coming to live among them and working side by side and that the people were blessed by this act which broke cultural barriers.   

It started because one of our group took the initiative to ask if we could help and followed through until our hosts made the arrangements.  It wasn’t something I was looking forward to and I grumbled a bit in my heart.  It hurt physically to do the work and it hurt emotionally to be laughed and stared at.  But God works when we least expect it and in spite of our hearts.  He can use our obedience in ways we cannot expect and often in ways we never know.    

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.  

Continue to live in Him, root yourself in His Word, embrace His strength, grow your faith, live a thankful life, and follow in obedience.