A Blessing

For the last three weeks, my friend Wil Maxey has been staying with me at the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf. 

Wil is a senior at Wheaton College, and he just finished a six-month internship in Palestine through our school’s HNGR (Human Needs and Global Resources) Program.  

I got to hang out with him a couple months ago when he visited Amman to renew his visa (mentioned in a previous post). That time together was wonderful, but far too short. I’m so grateful for this longer visit, during which we’ve been able not just to catch up, but to deepen our friendship beyond what it was at Wheaton. 

Like all visitors to the school, Wil has been put to work: he has alphabetized envelopes, dismantled shelves, supervised children, even tried his hand at being a car mechanic! Through it all, he has embodied enthusiasm and servanthood. And the rest of the school has noticed. We are all grateful for his visit. 

Because both of us are working so much, we actually don’t have a lot of time together. But even if the only time we have together comes at the very end of the day, when we’re both getting ready for bed and falling asleep, I still appreciate his presence. There’s something about sharing space with another, about being physically close to someone who understands you better than everyone else nearby does. 

God knew what He was doing when He created bodies. 

...which is good, because I personally have no idea what He was doing. 

More about that later. But now, I’m going to give my body what it wants: rest.

Blessings upon blessings.