Living in a Glass House

Sometimes it can be very discouraging to be so limited in our language ability. We are ready to minister and share Christ with people! But we realized recently that we just don't have the vocabulary to do such a thing in Spanish. It is our natural tendency to measure our "value" as missionaries by how many Bible Studies we lead or how many of our neighbors we have led to the Lord. Our current language ability, however, isn't exactly conducive to such a thing. The Lord has been very clear in telling us that our current work is to learn the Spanish language well. Why must we learn this language so well? "And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent." Acts 22:2 We must be able to speak the heart language of the people or they simply will not want to listen! But we are very aware that, although we can't share Christ yet through our words, we are every day being lights for Him by our actions. We are very aware of the fact that we live in a glass house. Most everybody knows that we are missionaries here to learn Spanish. We are the only Gringos on our street. More than we realize, we are being watched!! Although we can't communicate all that well yet, our lives, our behaviour, our actions - all of these things have the power to show the love of Christ to others. Yikes! I'd almost rather lead a Bible Study! Please pray for us - that our lives would shine for Jesus that others may be drawn to Him. Here are some specific prayer requests:

• Neighbors. We have slowly begun building relationships with our neighbors. Pray that we would always shine with the love of Christ, that we would be open and friendly (even when we don't feel like it) and that we could build friendships with them.
• Our Guard. Our street guard is quickly becoming a great friend. He adores Brooklyn who yells "hola" to him every time he passes our house. We occasionally take him a plate of food for dinner and Sean has been able to sit and talk with him often. He needs Jesus! Pray for openness - we aren't the first Gringo missionaries to live in this house and we know he's been approached often with the Gospel message before. He has probably heard the Gospel presented to him in broken Spanish more than he cares to! But, he still needs Jesus. Pray with us for Jose.
• Our family life. We do live in a glass house. Our neighbors hear everything, see everything and know more than we think they do about our daily life! Pray that, as a family, we could be strong. Our neighbors will naturally form their ideas about Christ by the way that we, as a family, live. Without realizing it or seeking it, we have become a "City on a Hill" - it is VITAL that even in our personal life, we are Christ-centered, loving, respectful, kind, patient, hard-working, etc.
• Spanish. Keep praying for our language acquisition. Yes, we are progressing - praise the Lord! But, we still have so much to learn. We want to speak this language well. Let's face it, "Tarzan Spanish" would probably be pretty annoying to listen to! We need Supernatural help in learning this language and applying what we learn to our every day lives. Right now we are able to talk to our neighbors about the weather, our plans for the weekend, our likes and dislikes, our favorite food, etc. We pray that by the time we leave, we are able to talk on a deeper level, especially about spiritual matters.