Ripples of Love

Recently, we shared pizza with a young mom and her two boys, who are originally from another country. She was invited by one of our single girls. The lady, whom we will call Martha, greeted us and asked us right away if we knew of anyone who would be hiring for work. We know she is not legal, so her options are limited. Most likely, even with our suggestions, she will only find jobs that are not feasible for raising her two small children. The thing is, her fiancé is also working two jobs, but jobs like these pay about three dollars an hour with no benefits. However sad that sounds, it is better than what they would get from their native country, as most people get ten dollars a month, from what she tells us.

From the beginning of our arrival in Costa Rica, most immigrants have been traveling through, where they may be able to find necessary care in health, education, and future work for themselves and their children. Some stay and some travel further on. Regardless, there is a great price to pay for this. Martha is no exception. With little money she had, she left everything else behind, walked for months, and even risked her life, and the lives of her children, to find a better life. She shared specific places where they had to be vigilant and alert so that they were not mugged and/or killed, and that they had to walk over dead bodies along the way. Like many, Martha and her family will probably move to another location depending on the season. These are desperate people. Desperate to find hope in a dream to reach a place where they can live a life they hear about and see on their screens.

We totally understand that a country must take care of its people and borders as well, no doubt. We have, however, been trying to contemplate how to successfully solve this issue. We asked Martha how she thought this problem could be solved. She said it just couldn’t. All those who have a heavy influence in her native country have family members who will be instated in the future. There will be no change.

This can be pretty discouraging.

We all know that the cause of all this is definitely deeper than position/possession. It begins internally, right? We have read about Jesus being tempted in the desert (Matthew 4:1-11). The one who is after our souls knows exactly where to “aim his sniper”—greed, power, desires of the flesh…to name a few.

Where Jesus demonstrates faith and obedience, many of us, leaders included, are taking the bait and being shot, and many more than we realize are ultimately affected by it.

Is there anything we can do? How much of an impact can we make with this seemingly hopeless situation? We are just “the little people.” How can we avoid immense discouragement in all this, which is another major target the enemy likes?

Once again, we are reminded to look in front of us. God sure does LOVE his “little people,” right? Noah, David, Esther, Mary, Peter, Martha… Throughout history, God has been faithful to those who love Him.

We may not be close to the political realm, but we have this young lady at our table. We feed her more than just pizza. We talk about faith, obedience, and perseverance. We give encouragement and hope, not quite the hope of the world, but Hope that is everlasting. We share what has been given to us, physically as well as spiritually and emotionally. We cannot help an entire country with the decisions we make in one day, but we can help one person in front of us, and that ripples on to those whom she encounters as well.

If you think about it, I’m sure there is someone you know who could use some encouragement and hope. We are all super busy, and this is understandable, but I can assure you that even if the task seems small, big things will be happening. And who knows, maybe the person you encounter will be in a position of great influence one day. Regardless, you will help to cause a ripple of love to migrate beyond measure. NOTHING done in love is wasted.