Day 34: We will be Reunited

"But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.’ He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God." 
-John 11:49-52



I remember when I met all the other YASCers for the first time. We spent a long weekend together in Florida way back in February 2013.  It seems like a long time ago now, but that weekend turned out to be pretty pivotal in my life, and I'm guessing the same is true for all of us.  That was when we learned all the details about the program we're currently serving in, and it was when most of us decided to answer God's call to mission service with a more or less resounding 'yes!'

One of the people whom the Church brought to help teach us about the YASC program was a former YASCer from a few years ago named Robin.  When she talked about her experience in YASC, Robin said something that has stuck with me in all the months since and has particularly been on my mind recently.  She talked about how difficult it was to come home after her YASC year and how the only thing that comforted her was looking forward to the kingdom of heaven.  At the time, I remember thinking she had to be wrong - surely it is harder to leave one's family and friends and home and country for a year than it is to come back to them?  And what does she mean about the kingdom of heaven?

Fast forward 14 months.  Here I am loving every frustrating, exhilarating, swiftly fleeting second of my time in South Africa.  It has been such a privilege to share my nursing knowledge somewhere it is so desperately needed.  It has been awesome to meet my friends and coworkers and to spend time exploring and falling in love with this incredibly diverse and stunning country.  And now I'm realizing that Robin was right.  I believe that leaving South Africa might be one of the hardest things I'll ever do.  You see, when I left my home and my family to come here, I always knew I would come back to them.  But when I leave South Africa, there is no guarantee that I will ever come back.  I hope I will, but let's be realistic, it's a long and expensive flight and life gets busy and even if I do come back for a visit sometime, it won't be the same as living here for a year.  The people I've met here, the patients I serve, the carers I work beside, the friends I share meals with, these people have been my entire life for the past year and I am, quite frankly, freaking out at the thought of leaving them.  I guess you could say I'm feeling like one of the 'dispersed children of God'.

Today's readings are very comforting to me, which might be ironic since the gospel passage, taken in context, is leading directly to the crucifixion, but the message I'm getting right now is one of hope and reassurance.  What sticks out to me from these passages is God's promise that we will be reunited.  He will gather His kingdom from everywhere it is scattered in this huge world, and we all shall be one.  I think that's exactly what Robin was trying to say about the kingdom of heaven all those months ago.  Goodbye is not really goodbye.  We will be together again, me and my family at home and my family abroad and all the YASCers and all their people from all their placements and everyone reading this blog.  God will gather us all together in the end.  That's His promise.

Keri Geiger is 27 years old and from the Diocese of Virginia.  
She is a registered nurse in the United States and is working as 
the coordinator for inpatient services at Hawston Hospice in Hawston, South Africa.

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Day 32: Call to Mind

"Seek the Lord and his strength :
 O seek his face continually.
Call to mind what wonders he has done :
 his marvellous acts, and the judgements of his mouth," 
-Psalm 105:4-5




Have you ever had a moment where you thought God was not listening to you? I know I’ve felt like that. The sad part is sometimes I do give up. I know it’s hard for people to admit that they have given up on God, but everyone has a moment of weakness. In today’s reflection, I look at Psalm 105, where it reminds me that God shows you what wonders he has created.

The moment that you have seen your troubles and ask God “why me,” you tend to forget that maybe there was a reason; you spilled your coffee on you, forgot to pay your parking ticket, or even fell late on paying your bills. The “why me” moments or questions, are actually the answer to why it happens. In the verse 4 it states “seek the lord and his strength” How powerful is that? It is a saying that most of us tend to forget when these “why me” problems happen. For example, I always would turn to God and ask him “why me” when there was a problem, that the only time that I thought I needed him. I didn’t realize until later that I had to seek him and his strength to find an answer.

My nephew helped me started seeking the lord and his strength. When he would come over on Saturdays, I forget my problems because I realized that God’s strength was in my nephew. This is then brought to verse 5 where it states, “Call to mind what wonders he has done, his marvelous acts.” My nephew was the marvelous thing that god created and that was my answer to seeking out the lord. All my “why me” problems went away and I found the answer to those questions.


Your answer to seek the lord is all around us. We are reminded of it when we see the sunrise, play with our dog, spend time with our family, or even just reading a book outside under a tree. We are surrounded by many creations and we must remember that the lord’s strength is when we see his marvelous doings.

Joseph Morin is from the Diocese of West Texas and 
serving in Panama with Iglesia Episcopal San Mateo. 

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Day 29: I Shall Not Want

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.
 He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for you are with me; your rod and your staff,
they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
 forever." 
-Psalm 23:1-6



This is a verse that I’m sure most of you are very familiar with. It is something we have recited time and time again, and even memorized. But this time that I sat down to look at it, I realized that I’ve never truly meditated and reflected on what it truly means.

When I read it this time, the first line was particularly powerful to me. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” I shall not want – this line is especially relevant in the world that we live in today, and is the line that I want to focus on. We seem to live in a world full of “want” and “desire”, but no matter have much we have find that we are never quite satisfied. We find ourselves wanting more. We want the next upgrade of the iPhone, we want a new car, we want to make more money, we want a bigger house, we want a better job, etc. And that is exactly what I think this verse is advising against this – these types of superficial wants and desires.

Psalm 23 is telling us that we shouldn’t want because the Lord is our shepherd – he will provide for all that we need. In fact, another version of this verse says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I have everything I need.” But that’s the thing, and often where the lines get blurry. What do we really need? The problem is, we as human beings tend to have a different idea of what we think we need than what God thinks that we need. Yet not only do we feel that we need these things, but we often have the attitude of “I need it, and I need it now.” But as we have heard time and time again, it is not about what we want, but what God wants. And He is going to do it in his own time, regardless of your current plan.

Ironically, I was reminded of this conflict between “wants” and “needs” this past weekend. I was able to travel to a community in the interior of Panama with a few other people from the diocese, and we were able to learn and observe the culture and way of life. We learned that the community has prevalent health issues as well as a continuous lack of running water. Many of the members are self-reliant and produce and grow their own food, and have just enough to provide for their own family. Yet, despite all obstacles, they are some of the happiest and loving people I have ever met. As a community as a whole, they live a joyful and satisfied life. One woman that I met said, “I am a woman of little money, but I do have a lot of good friends. For that, I am always thankful. I have what I need.”

Meanwhile, I (and I assume many of you) come from a culture that seems to feel that what we “need” is to have constant access to the world of technology, whether it be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, the TV, or whatever else. But that’s just it – we don’t need them to survive, we don’t need them to be happy. These types of wants actually seem to do more damage by creating a distraction from what is actually important. God created us to be present, to be part of a community that loves and supports one another. He doesn’t want us to be preoccupied by our wants, but to be satisfied by what we have. Because He is our Shepherd, we have everything that we need. And although this is hard to accept at times, that we don’t actually need all the things that we think that we need, God is asking us to accept it because He knows what’s good for us and He ultimately knows what we need.

Now, I’m not saying that you need to immediately drop any idea of what you want, sell all of your TVs and electronic devices, and move to a smaller house - I am simply saying that we should daily take steps closer to help us be present. We should consciously be aware of our desires and that maybe they aren’t what is most important, and to trust that the Lord will provide. Because the Lord is our shepherd, we have everything that we need.

Rachel Carter is 22 years old and from the Diocese of East Carolina. 
She is currently serving in Panama City, Panama. She is teaching 
World History for 9th and 10th grade at St. Christopher's Episcopal School in Panama.

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Day 25: Coming Out of the Darkness

"...saying to prisoners, 'Come out', to those who are in darkness, 'Show yourselves.'...Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the Lord has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his suffering ones. But Zion said, 'The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me. Can a woman forget her nursing-child or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you." 
-Isaiah 49:9, 13-15



I’ve always been fond of Isaiah. There are so many wonderful verses in this lengthy book, and today’s readings do not disappoint—as per usual, there is much food for thought.

Isaiah 49: 9; 13: …saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out’,
 to those who are in darkness, ‘Show yourselves.’
 … Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people, 
and will have compassion on his suffering ones.


And yet…I can’t help but have a twinge of discomfort when I think about this reading, like really think about it. I mean, we gloss over it, we read it once, and perhaps consider how nice it sounds. But lately I’ve reflected quite a lot about darkness. Not in the sense of my YASC placement; I’m head over heels about being back in Brazil again. But just because things can go or perhaps are going well doesn’t mean we don’t have our own moments of being in darkness. Recently, someone very close to me had a few months’ bout of severe depression, enough so that their entire personality and communication was distinctly altered. It was a very difficult time through which to pass, even more so to come back to the U.S. and see her in that state.

I am so beyond thankful that due to modern medicine and caring, healing hands, that time has passed and that person has improved substantially, but when she was in the midst of it, the rest of us too felt like we were in some amount of darkness. Uncertain if it would pass. It brought back memories of my own struggles with depression in high school. The difficulties of coming out of that darkness, no matter how much I felt the calling to do just that. It’s easy to become used to the darkness, or to be so lost in it all that you wonder if it will ever end – even if there’s a light shining behind your shoulder.

It is so easy in times like these to feel as Isaiah continues:

14 But Zion said, ‘The Lord has forsaken me, 
my Lord has forgotten me.’ 


Lent has always been one of my favorite seasons, if for no other reason it compels us to slow down. To wait and reflect. We’re closing in on Holy Week—and though that means getting closer to Easter Sunday, first we must pass through Good Friday, and the darkness that comes with it. There are times we might feel the weight of that darkness more than others. And yet, as the aforementioned verse says, not only will the Lord comfort us, but He will have compassion. At its root, compassion means ‘to suffer with.’ Not only do we have a God who calls us out of darkness, but He will suffer with us through it.

15 Can a woman forget her nursing-child, 
or show no compassion for the child of her womb?
Even these may forget, 
yet I will not forget you.

Yes, we know the story that lies so soon ahead of us. We know how it plays out and that there’s a happy ending. But I take solace in the fact that we have our moments of darkness as well—the light would not seem so bright if we had nothing in which it could shine, and bring us to the joy that awaits.

Nina Boe is working in the Anglican Diocese of Rio de Janeiro, 
part time  in support of the Office of the Bishop and part time with the 
Church  of the Most Holy Trinity's human rights ministry and community outreach.

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Day 17: To Be of Service

"Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy. Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”
-2 Kings 5:13-15



As a YASC missionary in her second year, I can’t tell you how many times people have asked me exactly what is is that I do. Additionally, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve kind of gotten the feeling that people expect a more exciting or spectacular answer. My first year was essentially administrative and communication support, with travels to various dioceses in Brazil to get to know the wider work of the Episcopal Anglican Church here.  My second year has exciting opportunities in human rights work and community outreach…and yet, I’ve come to realize that I’m not really here to change much anything at all. After a year, it’s been clear that I’ve been changed to a fair degree. But when I’m honest with myself, I’m not here to change Brazil, or the world, however much I’m passionate about that — the real game-changer is God, and the beautiful and mysterious ways in which the Spirit works in, with and through us and others.

I was particularly struck by the story of Namaan in today’s readings. Here we have a man with a very serious situation—leprosy. As would most people in his situation, he sought to be healed from his affliction. No doubt he was in much discomfort, and was willing to do nearly anything to be relieved from it. Furthermore, he also had the distinction of being in possession of enough resources to be able to do nearly anything for it…and yet he is noticeably displeased with the simplicity of Elisha’s response. There was no clap of thunder, or mystical appearance of God in the midst—Elisha didn’t even make a personal appearance; he sent a messenger. Namaan was not exactly thrilled with the response.

 But his servants approached and said to him, ‘Father,  if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, “Wash, and be clean”?

Namaan obeys, and is healed. His life is changed.

In mission work, we talk a lot about the concept of ‘ministry of presence.’ As the name might suggest, it is mission enough to be — to be in community, to be amongst people, to participate in their lives, to walk with them. This isn’t necessarily an easy thing to do, as we so often feel like we have to do more, be more, make something, and maybe it has to be big and noticeable and make me feel like I actually did something worthwhile. In that sense, Namaan’s story is a good one for me to keep in mind: had God asked me to do something difficult, I would not have hesitated…what more then that he asked me to do something so simple? To be here in Brazil, in community, amongst people. Simplicity doesn’t negate its importance, but it’s made me realize that so very often, I try to overcomplicate things—and it’s not about that.

As author Victor Hugo wrote, “to love another person is to see the face of God.” And what is it that we remind ourselves before Communion? That we are to love the Lord our God, and to love our neighbors. That everything else we believe, why we do what we do, rests upon these two things. It is so beautifully simple, and yet we know in practice, it can all be so beautifully complex, and difficult to do. When we try to do it, life happens. God happens…and everything changes.

Nina Boe is working in the Anglican Diocese of Rio de Janeiro, part time 
in support of the Office of the Bishop and part time with the Church 
of the Most Holy Trinity's human rights ministry and community outreach.

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