Day 1 - Why Bolivia?

Day 1

Why are you going to Bolivia?

I have had this question asked many times over the last year.  Some people ask it in a way that seems like they are really asking, “Have you lost your mind?  Why would you go to a place like Bolivia?”  Others seem excited for me and the adventure of moving to a new country.  And a few have seemed angry that I am moving away from family, church, or school.  So what do I say?

I met Bolivia by accident in 1985.  I had made plans to go to a school in Valledupar, Colombia with the Assemblies of God.  But I had graduated in December and did not have a job.  Colombia was waiting until the school year started in August.  Eight months was a long wait with no job.  I made a phone call to the Assemblies office to tell them I was ready to come in the summer, though I don’t know how that would have gotten me a job. 

God had something different planned than Colombia.  When they answered the phone and I said who I was, I was immediately put on hold.  A few minutes later I was being asked to fill an emergency vacancy for a teacher who was having a difficult pregnancy.  I accepted.

The morning I left for Bolivia, two weeks later, it was snowing.  I was having second thoughts.  It was a few hours before I was leaving for the airport.  I remember going for a walk in the snow and asking God what I was doing, wondering if I was doing God’s will.  It was one of the most beautiful snows I have ever seen.  It was thick on the ground, but not sticking to the roads.  I was thinking if it were too late to back out of Bolivia.  When I returned home I read the book of Haggai.  In chapter 2 a verse stood out that says, “from this day forth I will bless you.”  It was one of the times in my life that I felt God speak to me.  The message I got out of the verse was to go and watch God begin to bless me.

The next day I arrived in the sweltering heat of the tropical rain forest of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.  I didn’t know anybody and knew even less of the culture.  But it turned out to be five years of the most meaningful years of my life.  The people I met, and kids I taught, became family.  One of the girls I taught in Bolivia, when I visited in July of 2015, who is now a mom, told me when I return this year, I will be returning with family.  So that is one of the answers to the question.  I am returning to family. 

So what I want to do in this blog is tell you why Bolivia.  I want to tell you about the culture from my point of view.  I want to introduce you to the church of South America.  I want to compare teaching in a private school with small classes to a public school with large classes.  And I want to talk about the writing process, because I am going to try to become a writer.

I would love you to follow my blog and ask questions.  I would appreciate you sharing my blog with people you think would enjoy it.  And please tell me what you think.

May the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully.  Ruth 2:12