I already feel Belizean

Jeff Spicoli has a son, and he is scuba diving with me in Belize. Well, that's not entirely true, we haven't gone scuba diving yet...

I woke up at 2:50 am this morning and flew to Belize today. Upon arriving, I met 6 random, yet incredibly interesting people. I really don't know what I was expecting, but I don't think this was it.

As much as I believe the old adage, "you can't judge a book by it's cover," I still do. It's my secret sin, but now it's out; I'm a judger. I size you up within two seconds and put you in a box. I have boxes for all sorts of people: the hipster, the cynic, the poet/lover/hypocrite/jock. I know; I didn't think the poet/lover/hypocrite/jock existed either! I categorize people so I know how to interact with them. I assume that a musician wants to talk about music, while the guy with a beer belly wants to talk about the bears/packers rivalry. You don't spend 4 years as a corporate salesman and walk away without some nifty party tricks.

What's even worse, is that I catch myself putting my God in a box at various times too, but I confess my sin in order to encourage you. Sometimes God will bust out of that box and do some amazing things, like how He amazed me with His choice of missionary characters.

I mean, you would think that every 20's something Christian from America would be about the same right? Or at least shallow enough for me to size 'em up and spit 'em out...

We got the kid who looks like the hippie, the kid who actually is, the cool confident guy, the constantly distracted southern bell, innocent Ingrid and a wise sage. Interestingly, I can't wait to find out more about these people, because the kid who looks like a hippie is actually a wise sage, the kid who is a hippie is the type of guy that will push me to face my fears, the innocent Ingrid is so full of compassion that I want to cry when she opens up about her struggles, and so on and so forth. Each person I met so far has already shown a unique characteristic that:

a. didn't fit inside the box I made for them

b. is a strength that I lack

c. makes me respect them so much

God is so cool. I'm excited to see how He uses this diverse group to help me grow more like Him, and I hope that I can bring you along for the ride.

Please pray that my heart stays open, and my attitude stays loving.