This past week we had the pleasure of entertaining friends from Illinois. It was fun and refreshing to have two sets of fresh eyes looking at the place we now call home. Along the way, we experienced:
- Exclamations about the eccentricities of Panama’s traffic.
- Marvel at the beauty of the mountainous skyline.
- Wonderment over where we are privileged to live.
- Curiosity about the differences in dress and customs.
- Amazement at the grand scale of the Canal operations.
- Admiration over our Spanish skills … even though we feel like we know next to nothing.
As we tried to help our guests navigate through and appreciate Panama, we were called upon to explain, sometimes defend and often confess our ignorance. Still, I was amazed at how much I have learned in a few short years. Each time we show Panama to visitors, I find myself feeling a little more at home. Somehow sharing the country helps us own the country.
It is a phenomenon that I’ve experienced in another more intimate area of my life. The more I share what I believe about my faith, the more it becomes my own. When you talk to people who don’t know Jesus as their Savior, you are forced to explain, defend and often confess your ignorance. The challenge forces you deeper in your own understanding. The fact that critics do not dissuade you from what you believe, confirms the reality of your faith. You realize that it is gift of the Spirit and not merely an inherited cultural construct. Here’s a passage I share with you as an encouragement to share your faith … and own your faith.
I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Philemon 1:6
