We were asked to write a blog about how we felt before leaving on this mission trip. Here is what I’m expecting…
Okay, I’ve put this off long enough… What do I expect from this mission trip?
I expect to be changed. And I want to be changed-desperately. I want to destroy any pride in me, I want to rid myself of materialism, I want to be transformed into the image of Christ.
I expect to hear God’s voice clearer than ever before. One of the biggest reasons I wanted to go on this trip was get away from all the distractions so I can hear His voice, and then obey accordingly.
I expect signs, miracles, and wonders. I’ve been reading two books from the Chinese Church (who see signs, miracles and wonders all the time) and here are two things that really struck me.
1) Brother Yun, in the book The Heavenly Man, said that when we follow Christ, signs, miracles, and wonders follow us. We DO NOT follow after miracles. We fix our eyes on Jesus and allow Him to do the impossible.
2) An excerpt from the book Back to Jerusalem: “Normal” Christianity for a believer is when we live according to the pattern of the church laid out in the word of God. The Church in the book of Acts did not have remarkable experiences and success, they had what should be the “normal” lives and experiences for any church that claims to have been redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus. They are the standard for us to follow. Much of the church in the world today, is abnormal and unbiblical. May we all fall to our knees and seek the Lord’s help to live out what he accepts as normal Christianity.” I expect to experience “normal” Christianity on this trip.
When I first signed up I had all the grandiose visions of how incredible this trip was going to be. Everything was going to be perfect, even when things didn’t work out great we would still be having fun the whole time. But God has definitely been revealing to me that this is not an 11-month vacation to travel the world. There are going to be times when it sucks. There are going to be times that I want to go home. There are going to be times when I will be crying out to God because I need Him so much. And by the end, I expect to be 100% dependent upon Him. And that…is exactly where I want to be ; )
