Diary from Guyana - WORSHIPING IN "A FOREIGN LAND"

By Celia Shortt

Church is an important part of my life wherever I am. So, when I moved to Guyana, it was a natural thing for me to look for a church here.

Now, I go to church for many reasons. One of the most important reasons is that I enjoy the fellowship and encouragement I receive when I am with other believers. Well, like a lot here, church is much different than church back home.

First off, like most places here, I can’t blend in. I stand out everywhere I go. That makes it hard when I want to just sit back and absorb what the pastor is saying. Second, it also makes it hard to worship when everything around me is different. I can’t revel in the comfort of what I am used to.

So, I grew discouraged with church. In fact, I even thought about not going one Sunday morning. For me, that was breaking a lifelong habit. I wasn’t ready to do that, so I went to church, reluctantly.

When I arrived, I had to look around to make sure I was in the right place. There was an entire group of Americans there. I was a bit overwhelmed, so I did my usual act and sat at the end of one of the back pews. I wasn’t fast enough. The Americans started talking to me while another quickly snapped my picture with one of the children at church.

These folks were from a church in the U.S. and were visiting to do some missions work with the children’s home that was run by the church. Not only that, but their team leader lived in Guyana and was going to be back here permanently in January. In less than five minutes, God had made my trips to church worth everything that it took to get me there.

Despite the differences between my church here and my church back home, I still see God working in both places. That is one thing that hasn’t changed with my location.