Glory in the Process

This blog is all about the ups and downs of our life in ministry here in Brazil, and this week is a chance to share a down. Friday we went to Brasilia for Jeyson to take his written commercial pilot's test after MUCH studying and preparation. As you might remember this very difficult test involves a total of 5 subject areas. Jeyson had already passed 3 and was taking the remaining 2 areas. On Friday Jeyson passed one of the areas well and missed the other one by 2 points :( So, sadly this means that he will have to prepare for and take all 5 areas again before moving on to the next step in his technical training. This is not an unusual situation, in fact everyone that we know of going through the training has taken the test multiple times. However, still we were bummed that Jeyson will have to go "back to the drawing board" and start all over with all 5 areas. We really were hoping that he would be able to move on at this point.

I have to admit that I was especially confused about what in the world God's purpose in this could be. Doesn't He want us to go through this as quickly as possible and get to northern Brazil to do this aviation ministry there? After discussing this for nearly the whole 2 hour trip home, our answer is no....no God's "goal" is not to get us there as quickly as possible. His plan is for us to bring Him as much glory as possible in each step along the journey, in the process. We, as humans (and especially as Americans), are often only interested in the results and see the process as only a means to an end. We forget that all of life is a process, there is never really a moment when we arrive. Our focus should be giving God glory in each moment of this journey. We should concentrate on what God has given us as a task for today and how we can do that with our whole heart for His glory. Rather than just focusing on the outcome, let's focus on giving Him glory on the journey. I know this could definitely apply to many people's situations - raising children, getting a degree, going on a short term missions trip, searching for a job, planning a new ministry at church. Really there is no guarantee that the imagined result will ever happen, so rather than looking to the future outcome thinking that will bring Him glory, keep your eyes focused on bringing Him glory right now, in each step of the process.

Other than this meaningful conversation, another joy that came out of this disappointment was the opportunity to be reminded of what a wonderful husband I have. In such a discouraging situation I imagine many people's first instinct would be to blame, be angry, give up, or shut down...but not Jeyson. This weekend I was reminded of his wonderful character that instinctively goes back to God's truths and trusting in Him, even when situations don't make sense. In fact the whole "giving God glory in the process" discussion was really him reminding me, when I was despairing :) Jeyson has such a wonderful, steady personality that is able to take each moment in stride and react calmly and thoughtfully even in stressful circumstances. I'm so glad God brought this much needed quality to me when he gave me Jeyson! Well I could keep going on and on, but really I am just so thankful for my wonderful husband and his godly character.


So, what's next? Although there is no requirement to take the next test within a certain amount of time, so we're hoping to not put this next step off for long. Jeyson will be talking with his supervisors at Asas to try to determine what to do next, so we'll keep you posted when the next test date is set.

This week is Asas's annual "business" meeting, which means lots of time in meetings and important decisions. If you remember, please pray for wisdom and God's direction for our mission. Sorry there are no pictures (of us) this week, hopefully you'll see some next week!