Being Flexible

{Click here to see details of this week's FREE giveaway!!}

Mark and Amy Coffey have 5 children:  

Tyler (14), Chase (11), Emilee (9), Luke (7), and Addison (1).  They served as missionaries in Peru, South America for 4 years and then came back to the states to help start the Vision Baptist Church and Our Generation Missionary Training School.  They have also traveled around the states representing the Bible college ministry in Peru.   Currently they are on deputation, as they will be returning to the mission field to serve as church planters in South Africa.

You can follow Amy on her blog, A Coffey Break!
 

Amy Writes... 

"Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.” 

No worries, I realize the above quote is not part of the beatitudes or even a Bible verse for that matter but it contains a biblical principle and crosses my mind daily. 

If there is one piece of advice I can give a new missionary wife it would simply be:  be flexible.  

I was raised in a very stable home, stable meaning: I lived in same house pretty much all my life, attended the same church with the same Pastor ( my dad) my ENTIRE childhood,   Spring was softball, summer was family vacation and camps, and fall was Basketball.  It was very predictable and to me very normal. 

When I started dating my husband I knew he was going to be a missionary to Peru.  I could handle that; I was in love with him and surrendered to God’s will for my life.   When arriving in Peru, I settled, fell in love with the country and the people, after all that is where I would be spending the rest of my life.  When Mark told me that God was moving us back to the states, you would think, I would have been ecstatic, nope, I was devastated.  I had planned my life and it involved Peru.   I actually went through more culture shock the first year back in the states then I did in Peru, odd I know.   Over the course of our ministry together there are many times where God’s plan for us, didn’t match up to what I had envisioned.    I have had to learn to be flexible or should I say surrendered DAILY to God’s will for us in the BIG things.  

I have to be flexible not only in the big things but in the small things as well.  As I am writing this I am sitting in a hotel about 5 hours away from our “home”.  Tyler and Chase are at home with a friend, Emilee is doing home school on a bedside table and Luke is doing home school on top of a mini fridge while Addison is napping in the bathroom!  

The Biblical principle in this is simple.  

Be surrendered to whatever: 

I love the story in Mark chapter 1 where Jesus saw Peter and Andrew and told them to leave their job and follow him.  I love how they responded:

Mark 1:18 says; And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him.

Trust the Lord knows best for you:

We all know what Proverbs 3:5-6 says, Trust in the Lord with all your heart and Lean not on your own understanding… we need to trust God even if we may not understand it at the time. 

I get so mad at myself because I get so sad at change, but looking back at our 10 years of ministry, every change, every time God has moved us I didn’t understand it in the beginning but in the end I see how it was His perfect will.

Be Content; be happy.

 I love Phil 4:11-13, If you know anything about Paul’s life you know he had some kind of sickness, he was put in prison on several different occasion, shipwrecked, bit by a snake (that one would have ended my joy I’m sure )  and the list goes on.  Yet he can still say “I will be happy, I can do this”!  

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, [therewith] to be content

I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

I want to be happy and content in whatever situation I am in.  

Flexibility reminds me of a yoga class you may see on TV where the lady may have her legs wrapped around her neck like a pretzel.  The first few times she did it, I’m sure it wasn’t comfortable probably actually painful, but as you watch her do it with ease you can see her body is now use to it and she is enjoying the stretch. 

Our flexibility allows God to do even better things

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 KIdZ kOrNEr

Deputation may consist of hours in the car, not seeing our friends as often and school in weird places but it is also very fun and exciting!  

Mount Rushmore!

Tombstone, Arizona!                

 

Mall Of America!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you're new here at Hidden Treasures, we'd love to invite you to stick around and hang out a while!  You can hook up with us on Facebook or Twitter.  Or you can chose to have our post sent directly to your E-mail or RSS feed.  Thank you so much for taking the time to read our posts!  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~