“Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us, for we have endured much contempt.”
~ Psalm 123:3
Hi James and Ellen,
Are you arrogant kids? Are you conceited kids? Are you bigheaded kids? Ask your dad and/or ma if they think that you are arrogant and/or conceited and/or bigheaded kids. If your dad and/or your ma say that you are arrogant, and/or conceited and/or bigheaded kids, that means that you have the spirit of pride haunting you. The spirit of pride will have you feeling superior to other kids. The spirit of pride will have you ridiculing other kids. The spirit of pride will have you showing contempt of other kids. How do you feel when another kid – or a guy or gal, is putting you down and/or degrading you and/or slighting you? God’s specially chosen guys and gals had to endure guys who felt that they were more important than them, who humiliated them and who disrespected them. Because of the contempt that was being inflicted on God-fearing guys and gals by the guys and gals who were being led by the spirit of pride, one of the God-fearing guys scribed a short psalm ditty – Psalm 123. This short four verse psalm song was scribed to God as a prayer from the guys and gals who were fearfully and faithfully worshipping Him asking Him for His mercy and help against the guys and gals who were among them who were under the control of the spirit of pride. Verse 3 says, “Have mercy on us, O LORD, have mercy on us, for we have endured much contempt.”
Do you use your own wits and strength to get something done? Do you humbly go to God to ask Him for His help to get something done? Do you value your self-worth by your accomplishments? Do you feel valued by God as He sees you right now from His throne in heaven? It is much easier for a guy, gal or kid to point out the pride that is in the life of another guy, gal or kid than it is for the guy, gal or kid to look inside and see that there is arrogance and/or conceit and/or bigheadedness inside his or her own life. The spirit of pride will always try to have influence in the life of your grandpaa, grandmaa, dad, ma, you and . . . your grandpaa does not like to look for what is inside himself – because he knows that if he does, that he will find that the spirit of pride is in there. Your grandpaa should have learned by now – through experiences that he has had, that the moment that he starts to feel good about himself and what he has and is accomplishing that he is very likely going to get bopped on the head by God but . . .
When your grandpaa was told to be the Field Director for CART (Central America Regional Team) – which is the name that is used for the OC International field missionary team that is in Guatemala and over Equipo SEPAL (Servicio Evangélico Para América Latina) – which is the name that is used by OC International’s field missionary teams that are in Mexico and Central and South America and which are composed of expatriate and host country missionaries, your grandpaa was expected to go to the meetings that are scheduled each year for the Field Directors. These annual Field Director meetings are scheduled at different sites. The last Field Director meetings took place in São Paulo, Brazil. Your grandmaa was invited to go with your grandpaa to the Field Director meetings in São Paulo. Your grandpaa was really looking forward to going to these meetings. Just weeks before your grandpaa was to go to São Paulo, he had gone to Lake Bled, Slovenia to sit in on a missions conference with the European mission agency that is partnering with Equipo SEPAL. Patty Guerra de Pivaral – a host country missionary with Equipo SEPAL, facilitated three Guatemalan units – Yoly Soto, Hazel Herrera and Francisco and Shirley Gross, in their relationship with this European mission. The three units from Guatemala were doing really well as missionaries in Romania and in Spain. Yoly, Hazel, Francisco and Shirley and the European missionaries treated your grandpaa like an honored guest. Your grandpaa went to Slovenia because Patty could not go and Héctor – Patty’s husband, did not want to be the lone representative for Equipo SEPAL at the conference. Not long before going to Slovenia, your grandpaa and Héctor had gone to Rengo, Chile where they implemented a P.E.B. (Programa de Educación Bíblica). The P.E.B. in Rengo had gotten off to a good start. Shortly before he flew to São Paulo, your grandpaa attended a meeting where he sat next to the President of COMIBAM (Cooperación Misionera Iberoamericana Internacional). COMIBAM is the international umbrella entity for Latin America mission agencies. Most guys and gals who are involved with Latin America mission agencies know David Ruiz. Your grandpaa and David Ruiz had been in several meetings together and had come to know each other well. Your grandpaa was already a good friend of Jesús Londoño. Jesús is the Executive Director of COMIBAM. Jesús was for a time a host country missionary with Equipo SEPAL. Your grandpaa was feeling real good about himself as he and your grandmaa went to the airport to fly to Brazil. When your grandpaa and grandmaa arrived in Miami – where they had a connecting flight to São Paulo, they were told that they needed a Brazilian visa before they could board the plane that was to take them to São Paulo. Your grandpaa ‘wondered’ why he had not been told by the agency that sold him his and your grandmaa’s tickets that they needed visas to enter Brazil, he ‘wondered’ why the OC International Brazil field missionary team Field Director had not told him that he and your grandmaa needed visas to enter Brazil and he ‘wondered’ why Brazilian workers were so hardheaded. When your grandpaa and grandmaa finally arrived in São Paulo, your grandpaa was immediately told by the Area Director for the Equipo SEPAL field missionary teams that are in South and Central America and the Vice President for OC International field missionary teams that the OC International leadership had decided . . . God really bopped your grandpaa. Your grandpaa went to Brazil filled with pride. Your grandpaa left Brazil humbled.
Psalm 123 (791)