About 5 years ago I remember sitting in the back of a chapel listening to a man speak about grace.  This man was a daily servant at a homeless shelter in our area.  As he talked he described all types of individuals who over the course of the past few years he had been privileged to meet and serve.  He described the mother who’s husband had left her with nothing less than 2 young children and a mountain of unpaid credit card bills; they had come to his shelter looking for help.  He described the 18 year old teenager who had in a season of anger and discontentment chosen to leave his home in the east and seek something different in the midwest; unfortunately, that initial decision to run had set in motion of series of dominoes that had ultimately forced him to become a resident at the shelter.  As the speaker closed his message he said to each of us (students and adults alike), “Friends, don’t ever believe that God’s grace is reserved exclusively for the future.  Don’t ever think that God’s grace is something you will experience . . . some day.  God’s grace is what you experience every day.  If you have a home to live in . . . it’s by God’s grace.  If you have enough food to eat . . . it’s because of God’s grace.  If you have clean clothes to wear and choices of what shoes to put on . . . you are experienced in God’s grace.”

This past week I was in Ecuador with 9 other men from our church.  We served a church in Guayaquil, Ecuador that seeks to serve and care for the children in their community.  This church is a project site of Compassion International.  Our church supports over 200 children in Ecuador through Compassion.  So, this was an opportunity to be on the front lines and experience how generosity in our lives leads to blessings in their lives.

I won’t go into much detail about the trip.  I’ve asked a couple of the guys who went with us to share their experiences.  I’ll be posting those responses over the next couple of days.  I hope you will check it out and see what God was at work doing in us and through us.  So, while I won’t go into much detail I will tell you it was as I sat inside the walls of a home that was no bigger than most of our kitchens and I met the 4 families (a combined 20 people) who live in that home I was reminded that the only thing that separates my life from theirs is that for some unknown, undeserved, often unappreciated favor from God He chose to extend me his grace by gifting me with so much.

I hope as you follow along with these stories from those who went you will join me in continuing to pray for Ecuador and the countless numbers of kids and families and churches that need God’s presence and grace.