I have the word “maranatha” written across the mirror in my bathroom back home. It’s been there for about a year and a half now.
I first heard of it while watching a documentary about the ever-growing church in the Middle East. The Aramaic word means both “the Lord has come” and “Lord, come!” It was used as a greeting among early believers as a reminder that Jesus came, died, rose from the dead, and redeemed us as well as a reminder that he is coming back to us again.
I wrote it on my bathroom mirror as a daily reminder of that truth as well as the hope that it conveys.
Upon arriving at our ministry host site in Colombia, we walked to our room and I opened up a cabinet. Inside of it was a poster and on it written in large, blue letters was the word “Maranatha.” I stopped what I was doing and smiled. Here was that reminder for me, thousands of miles away from home. Every time I looked at that poster I was reminded of my mirror back home and the message that God had been speaking to me. I was also encouraged by the invitation that others before me had extended to make room for Christ in that very space.
Two and a half months later, we left Colombia and headed to Costa Rica. My team and I hopped on a bus that would take us to our new ministry site. About 30 minutes prior to arriving at our stop, I looked outside the bus window and saw the word “Maranatha” brightly painted on the side of a school. There it was again. In a different country on a different continent. “Lord, come!” He is being invited into this space too.
I think there’s something beautiful about knowing that Christ is being welcomed into homes and schools and various spaces all around the globe. The Global Church is alive and we share the hope of salvation as well as Christ’s eventual return.
God is being welcomed in nations all across the globe! How cool is that!? In a city of 5 million people in Colombia, the Lord is there. In the jungle of Costa Rica, the Lord is there. In my quiet spaces all the way back home, the Lord is there. And He’s right there with you too.
(The sign in my room at Ciudad Refugio that spoke continual blessings and encouragement to me.)
