Making Preparations For the End Zone

I was initially hesitant to ask you for more help, but after some prayer, I decided to take my own advice.  Let me give you a little history: 

When I first became a team leader in month 8, my team found themselves in Cambodia, a country with a pretty dark past because of the Khmer Rouge and the genocide that took place in the 1970’s.  My team of seven women did ministry in the capital Phnom Penh and we had weekends off.  That left us with ample time to explore the the S-21 prison and killing fields among other activities.  We also had the opportunity to visit Siem Riep Provence and Angkor Wat, one of the “new” 7 wonders of the world. And every activity costed money. 

One of my teammates didn’t have any personal money to participate in these activities with us, and because The World Race has a rule of pairs, meaning no racer can ever be left alone, two women had to stay behind from said adventures, not just one.  

My teammate expressed how she hated herself because she didn’t have the money to do the things we all wanted to do as a team, but she initially refused to ask anyone for help.  This put the rest of us in a tough spot.  Do we pay for her to come along knowing we have the resources if we pool our money together, or do we wait for her to express her needs to us?  Based on principal, we decided on the latter.  

As her team leader, I sat down with my teammate and shared with her how a missionary doesn’t just raise money for necessities.  They raise money for lodging and food and recreation and plane tickets.  Missionaries are completely dependent on their supporters to provide for their needs, and that includes our need to unwind and have fun.  And sometimes God just wants to bless our socks off because He loves us that much.  He has provided us with people that love us and are batting for us and taking us under their wing.  And these people want the best for us, and sometimes they simply want to bless us, but they don’t know how they can if we never tell them.

At the end of our conversation, I left the ball in her court and told her to think about what she thought God wanted her to do about her circumstances.  She ended up asking for help, not just from her teammates, but from her supporters back home and she was able to raise over $500 in one day for personal use. This ended our financial burdens as a team, and my teammate was able to join us in all of things we wanted to do together.  God blessed her when she asked, we were all blessed because of it, and those rooting for her were blessed knowing they provided a certain kind of encouragement for my teammate. She did indeed have a fan base sitting in the bleachers.  And as a missionary, that’s enough to make us smile from ear to ear.  

That was over two months ago in Cambodia, and now I sit in Botswana in a situation very similar but yet vastly different.  

Last month in Swaziland, my team(I’m leading a new co-ed team named End Zone) was in the most beautiful place I have seen on the race; we lived on top of a mountain and it was a mecca for outdoor exploration.  With areas to hike all around us, it was my dream location, and we even had weekends off to make outdoor recreation possible. But much to my dismay, I sprained my knee(it’s mostly healed now), and the exploration was nothing more than with my eyes for our last two weeks there.  A major bummer in my book. 

I was becoming bitter because of the injury, and not understanding why it would happen in the first place. It was right about the time I needed an attitude adjustment that I sensed God telling me, “You are injured for such a time as this.”

He wanted me to learn to ask for help, whether I felt I needed it or not, and he wanted to show me his faithfulness through the service of others.  So I asked my teammates for assistance, and they really stepped up when I needed physical assistance, and they encouraged to me rest so that my recovery would be quicker.