"The necessary evil of missions work..."

When I first accepted my position at Antioch Christian Academy back in February (it's crazy to think it wasn't all that long ago...), I had quite a few on-boarding meetings I attended virtually. The biggest topics for these were support-raising and visa paperwork. I distinctly remember someone saying, "You know, a lot of people are uncomfortable with support-raising and say that it's a necessary evil for missionaries... But really, it's the visa and all the paperwork that goes with it. That is the necessary evil of mission work."

While my support-raising process was relatively painless and full of blessings of the 'immeasurably more' variety, I could not fully appreciate the truth of that statement until this past week.

As most of you know, I was not able to get my visa in time to travel, so I came on a tourist visa (90 days) and the plan has been to apply for my visa in-country. Unfortunately for me (and three other missionaries and one missionary kid) the paperwork to apply in-country has slightly different requirements than out-of-country.

We found this out on Friday, after driving four hours the night before to Quito (gaining about 10,000 feet in elevation along the way), as we were told we did not have the correct documentation and notarizations for our visa application to be approved. This drive took place after waiting for three hours in a notary office. Needless to say, I was less than thrilled.

I had to wrestle a bit with the Lord that day, wondering why it had to be so difficult to get a visa while I was trying to be obedient to Him and His call. Shouldn't a smooth visa process be a compensation for my obedience? That seemed pretty fair to me...

Before we left to apply for our visas, I prayed these verses:

"Lord, save us! Lord, grant us success!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

From the house of the Lord, we bless you.

The Lord is God,

and He has made His light shine on us.

With boughs in hand, join the the festal procession

up to the horns of the altar.

You are my God, and I will praise you;

you are my God, and I will exalt you.

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;

His love endures forever." -Psalm 118:25-29

The funny thing is, before we left, I focused primarily on the first part of these verses. I wanted success; I wanted the blessing. But as we walked out of the building with a list of things we had to do and no visa, I had to sit with that last part:

He is God.

He is good.

He is worthy to be praised.

And He loves me.

A lot.

So here I must stay, trusting in He who is omnipotent, omnisciente, and omnitemporal. (I may have made up that last word, but it felt right ☺).

He is in control and He working all things for His glory. I am not in control, and seeking my own glory would ultimately be my downfall. So, we left Quito that afternoon, knowing we would have to make the trip again soon and trusting in His provision.

And, even though I did not get the specific blessing I wanted, I did get many blessings from my short trip to Quito. I was able to spend some quality time with some wonderful people. I went into nostalgia overload as I returned to the same place I studied abroad for four months in college. I saw an old friend from that same study abroad experience who is now working in Quito along with someone who went to my high school (it's a crazy small world!). I finally found a shower curtain rod for my bathroom. AND, I got Cinnabon cinnamon rolls. It was a good trip.

Thank you for your prayers as God continues to prepare the way before me! They mean the world to me and they are TRULY making a difference.

Right now I ask for prayers for our visa paperwork, that we would get what we need soon and be able to secure our visas!

I also ask for prayers for one of our students, who lost his mom this past weekend. Prayers that he would be comforted by his Father who loves him more than he knows. Prayers that he would be supported by family, friends, and school in this time.

Thank you, dear friends.

Bendiciones!

-Katie