P21The Curious Life of a Preacher's Wife

Plot: Rising Action

Azul had married Carlos Fuerza Corazon about a month after they both graduated from college. They went through the application process to become foreign missionaries with flying colors because Carlos had a dynamic personality. He never met a stranger. He could lead souls to the Lord in short order. They gained their monthly support goals through just under two years of deputation, and they went to work right away, getting to Paraguay in record time, settling into the capital city of Asúncsion, quickly, and diving into ministry among the leaders in Palma Loma with great Joy.

Carlos (or Fuerza as the locals liked to call him by his middle name) worked tirelessly for 30 years in this wonderful little boro, seemingly energized by the work, rather than being drained by it. Every three to fours years, Fuerza would return to the States to shore up the monthly financial support and to encourage the churches "back home," that their prayers and finances were, indeed, having a great effect in the Lord's mission field of Paraguay.

Sadly, Fuerza met his demise through an extended bout of pneumonia just as the family was beginning their fourth decade of ministry, and he was buried there in the land, that had become his home. Azul tried to keep the ministry going for ten long years, while the weight of serving alone, and without the same level of inner drive as her husband, started to wear away her reserves. She found herself needing two-week vacations every year, then one-week vacations every six months, then every quarter, and finally she needed long weekends every month just to stay sane.

The people of the church started to feel neglected in ministry because she just couldn't keep up the same pace, that Fuerza had kept for so many years. The "whisper campaign" started, then some of the ladies of the church invited Azul out for supper to one of their "encouragement sessions" to forceful exhort Azul to do more for the church.

Finally, the Nose-to-Nose meeting after her long weekend in Chololó was "the straw that broke the camel's back." She had had enough. She felt like a failure. She couldn't maintain her husband's standards of ministry. She was wrecked emotionally, physically, spiritually, and in every other imaginable way. In so many ways, she couldn't see herself as even being a Christian any longer. She had come to the end of herself, and it was now time to give up, go back home, and try to find some sort of peace of mind before she died, and apparently was headed to Hell forever.

However, as is consistently the case, the Lord lets His child reach the breaking point in order for that son or daughter to begin to walk the new direction, that He has already planned for that dear one to walk at this time in life. After Azul sets in motion her departure from Paraguay, she stumbles over ministry opportunities, that the Lord sets as boulders in her road all the way to home, where she will find out, that He has ministry, love, peace, and acceptance laid out already for her all the way, until her last day of temporal life on Earth.

Distress may cause the child of God to change directions in life, but the honor and love of the Lord never ceases for the called and cherished one, that He will never let go.

by Jay O’Toole
on October 6th, 2021