Heroes in Disguise
By Kim Delp, Missionary with the Santiago Partnership
In the news from the States, we hear a lot about health care workers, front line workers, first responders, as we should-they are doing amazing work. They truly are heroes and we SHOULD recognize what they are doing as amazing.
But I would be remiss to not highlight, lift up or talk about the amazing group of people we get the privilege to partner with here in Ecuador and who I am proud to call friends. They are unsung heroes, daily serving the marginalized, the forgotten, the widow and elderly. They do it day in and day out. They don’t ask for anything for themselves or their families, just more to be able to help more people. When I read the Bible and over and over I hear Jesus talking about serving, going above and beyond to give of ourselves to those who have less. To give more and more to the least and forgotten, I think of our partners. That is exactly what they are doing. The areas surrounding where the clinic and Casa Hogar are in Cayambe are some of the poorest areas in Ecuador, this is during the non-quarantine time, imagine now when those who sell what they grow have no one to sell to. Those who have moved to work in the rose plantations but now they are closed. Those who eat maybe once a day during non-crisis times.
In all honesty, it would be really easy to NOT imagine. It is easier. It’s easier to not imagine that because it hurts, it breaks something in my being. I feel guilty because I sit in my house with plenty and CAN’T leave to serve. I feel guilty because I feel I SHOULD be. I WANT to. That is, after all, what I am, I’m a medical professional, trained for emergencies and crisis. It’s hard sitting on the sidelines, knowing I could be helping.
The redemption, the amazing thing to me is that I am so proud of our partners in Cayambe who are being the Church. Some who aren’t even believers or who don’t have a significant relationship with Jesus are serving as His hands and feet to those broken, the marginalized, the forgotten. They are risking their health, giving of themselves in time and finance to serve. These are OUR heroes! We usually, in non-crisis times think to ourselves, WOW, they are amazing, but now, NOW they are truly heroes. They are going so above and beyond. They are living out right in front of us, Luke 6 when it says if someone takes your cloak to give your tunic as well.
We have so much to learn from our partners. Social distancing does not mean actual distance in anything else. Sure, there may not be greetings of kisses or hugs, but here, our friends are leaning in more. They are serving and showing even MORE hospitality than they normally do. They are examples to us to LEAN IN, to see what people need and to do EVERYTHING they can to help and meet those needs.
