What a Difference a Week Makes...

This was written Sunday afternoon...

What a difference a week makes...

I've been back from Haiti now for six days. Usually, I bounce right back and fall into my normal routine like I had not even been gone. This time, things are different. I don't know why, buy my mind and my heart is dwelling in Haiti. There was nothing out of the ordinary on this trip. It was not harder than usual, physically, emotionally, or spiritually. I've been a bit sickly, and my energy level is down a bit, but that is normal. It can't be culture shock. I've been to Haiti how many times now?

This morning, I was sitting in church pondering where I had been in the last week and the overwhelming change around me. I seem to be in a funk and can't quite get my head wrapped around it.... I finally wrote it all down, hoping it would help me process the changes and unkemptness I am feeling.

Last week, I was preaching a sermon on Jesus walking on water.
This week, I am listening to a sermon about being bold and living my life without hindrance.

Last week, people rushed to lined up for communion, and I placed the wafers in their mouths to serve them.
This week, the cracker and grape juice plate came by me, but there were not enough elements for everyone, so I passed the plate.

Last week, I was melting under a long-sleeve heavy robe while sitting under a make-shift church made of poles and a tin roof. The sides were tarps tied together. This was their church, as the earthquake destroyed their beautiful place of worship.
This week, I have goose bumps from the air conditioning and I find myself sitting amongst 1200 people in a huge auditorium with a loud band.

Last week after church, the community lined up to receive a small plastic cup of clean water.
This week, the line was long for Starbucks inside the church, but we didn't have to wait at our favorite Sunday afternoon restaurant.

Last Saturday night, my entertainment was sitting in a circle of twelve and listening to three of the members practice beautifully the song they prepared for the next morning's worship.
This weekend, I sat with my dear friend and watched performers in the Beatles' Cirque De Soliel show.

Last week, as I sat atop a mountain, I worried about a hurricane, winds, rain, and mudslides.
This week, as I sat in the middle of a desert, I was wishing for rain and wind.

Perhaps I am feeling as though I live in two completely different, separate worlds. Going from Haiti to Northern Virginia never hit me much; however, going from Haiti to Las Vegas is such a great change. Within 18 hours, I went from nothing to over-indulgance. In one world I drive down unpaved roads where women walk miles each day to gather water for their families. In another world, I watch extravagant fountain shows in front of glitzy hotels. In one world, it is realistic to see block after block of families living under tarps and in tents. Back in this world, construction vehicles block my driveway and the building of new homes is going on all around me. In one world, it is not unusual for ten people a day to ask me for food and water. In this world, the restaurants are numerous, and the waste is plentiful. In one world, I often use a bucket to flush a toilet, and here, I rank the hotels on the Strip according to their beautiful clean bathroom facilities.

It is quite the difference in living, in working, in sleeping, in eating...in every aspect of life... Except one. God is the one constant whether I am living and working in Las Vegas or in spending the days in the mountains of Haiti. Perhaps that is what I need to focus on as I attempt to extract myself from this funk. God is never-changing. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Perhaps that is what I need to focus on - the constants rather than the differences.