when i was twenty i spent a semester at the HEART training institute in central florida, studying small animal husbandry, intensive gardening, appropriate technology, small engine repair, permaculture, etc. this was a pivotal time for me, in part because i was finally stepping towards the dream God had put in my heart at age four to work among the poor back in my birth country of Peru. (also because i was given a book there by a classmate called “Experiencing God,” which began a life-long adventure of hearing God’s voice, but that’s a story for another post). i did end up returning to Peru to work in development, and over the years God has continued to have the development calling on my life. it’s an indelible part of who i am, though i’ve been slow to understand the implications and context.
for years that calling felt at odds with my husband’s. it took us out to portland for a degree in art/craft + social entrepreneurship (that i barely even started, as the babies and homeschool calling kept coming), and almost to cambodia. but as i’ve pressed in and surrendered my own will, been obedient to have all these kids and school them at home, i finally see it : community development begins at home. that old “give a man a fish, feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime!” adage is at the heart of our homeschool as i train my own kids now (two of whom already hope to be missionaries). here at home, i’m discipling my own kids, helping them grow in what we called in Peru “los cuatro areas,” : intellectual, physical, spiritual, social (using christ’s own development as an example from luke 2:52) so that they can have flourishing and self-sustaining futures in all the spiritual and practical ways. and, a fun little full-circle moment, though it’s twenty five years later and i’m having to re-learn all these things myself, i get to train my own kids to trim goat hooves! 👏🏻 (photos from 7/17 and 10/11/21)
