If I can’t stay in Southampton…
When I tell people about my summer plans I often get pretty worn out. I have not yet perfected the best way to tell people in a concise but full way. So read and I shall try and explain.
I do engineering. Yeah, it’s not glamourous but at least studying it a uni is interesting and I’m good at it. The vast majority of the time I really enjoy it which is more than a lot of essay-writing friends tell me is unusual. The other advantage is that engineers, especial electrical, are in huge demand and people will actually pay you to study it. I get to call myself a scholar and everything. The placement and scholarship pay well, have the occasional fun part and sound prestigious, but they take me away from the people I love and it’s pretty dull in all honesty. As an illustration I don’t mind exams at all because they are in Southampton I know straight after I have to work on placement with is so much worse. However it’s good to work out this early on in my working life what’s important, and it’s not money.
So pretty tired of engineering, at least in the real world. Couple that with my desire to do something more worthwile, you know actually help people rather than design and build yet more stuff. So what to do, ask God! I’ve hear a lot about a Christian organisation called latin link whilst at uni. The more I thought and prayed about it this seemed the right thing to do. They run step teams over July and August to South America. That’s slap bang right in the middle of the summer preventing me from doing my mandatory 8 weeks of placement. Oh well, no big deal, give up sponsorship.
I was all up for giving up on engineering in the summer, after graduation anywhere but at uni. But when mulling my options someone suggested asking my company to allow me to split my placement in two halves. For some reason I decided to ask them, pretty much saying I was quitting but leaving them the opportunity to let me do this in the middle. I really just wanted them to say no and then I could get people like my parents of my back about being sensible. Well obviously in the end the company came back and said yes. Credit where credit is due ABB are a pretty good company. But my conclusion, God wants me here. God does not want me to give up on engineering just yet.
So here I am back in Stone working away from everyone. I still wish I could teleport back to Southampton in the evenings, but I know this is where God has placed me to touch the lives of the people here by Him working through, so that is what I shall do. That completely changes the focus of my time here. I’m not going to lie, I’m failing completely for God after my first day. But that’s the amazing thing, He does not love me for how well I try to work for Him. He loves me because He loves me. I do not need to work to please Him. I will do my best to abide in Him and everything else should work out of that.
Still traveling to Argentina has an air of exciting and terrified anticipation. It’s going to be an incredible experience and I want to allow God to use me and mold me through it. I’m going to be in Salta, that’s right here:
We will be based in a poor area of the city called Barrio Autódromo, working alongside a local Church to reach out to people affected by drug and alcohol addictions. We will be helping the church practically with building work on their new church building as well as helping out with Sunday school and other youth and children’s ministries.
I’m not going because I’m supper spiritual. I’m weak and timid in a massive way. The only way I can even contemplate going through with it is because I have a huge almighty God with me. Nor do I take any credit for being very self sacrificing for others. A major motivation for doing it is the impact the experience will have on me, seeing how similar experienced have shaped those around me. However equally matched with that is a longing to help those in need.
So I will try to keep this blog updated with what I’m up to. I appreciate comments and any contact or encouragement. Also if you would like to I’d love you to pray for me. For now, for endurance that I will not burn out with no breaks between exams, work, Argentina, work and uni. However mainly that I will find incredible courage to overcome the fears of being a active Christian in the work place and the unknown of the step team.
Oh and those of you on facebook can join this group to suport me. ( I had an amusing chicken and egg problem when deciding whether create this or the group first)
I will now leave you with a with a photo from the most fun trafic jam I’ve even been stuck in, on Sunday on the way back from the beach, before my last exam on Monday.
