Loved and Desired by God

By Joe H., on mission in Peru

One of our friends here that has really impacted me is Manuel at the Garden of Peace–the community we visit where the Missionaries of Charity are. Manuel is handicapped and unable to walk, talk or feed himself. Yet, he is able to understand the little Spanish that I am able to speak. Like Manuel, I am in a place where I am very limited, unable to speak and communicate as much with the people here as I would like, and often feeling useless and frustrated that I am not able to do more. Manuel helped me see more clearly that our worth in the world is not solely about what we are able to do, whether it be sports, academic career, speaking Spanish, ect. For we must hold true that we are made in the image and likeness of God, that we all are loved and desired by God. If not, it is very sorrowful how our sinfulness rejects our true nature, leading people to believe the world would be a better place without people like my friend Manuel. I was inspired by the great sense of love God allowed me to feel for Manuel, and also by the Sisters who love and serve the children, elderly, and disabled of the Garden of Peace. It is through Manuel and the Sisters that I see the importance of not focusing on the things a person is able to do, but rather, the person we are serving.