Month 11: South Africa: Conversation between my contact (Trisha) and my team leader (Jake)
T: Thanks for all your help this month. I hope your team is enjoying working on the fence and painting. I’m sorry if the work seems below you, but it’s so helpful having people willing to do whatever we ask of them.
J: It doesn’t matter if my team enjoys the work. We are here to serve. You can ask us to do any task and our answer will be yes. This is what we signed up for.
Do you feel at times that people ask you to help out in a way that feels below you?
What if you went away for a year and all you did was clean, weed, and other mundane tasks?
Would you feel like that year was worthwhile?
Do you have to do something you can see in order to feel helpful or successful?
Is it all worth it in the end?
The world race is all about serving others. Each month we have been assigned to a ministry, not of our choosing, and asked to support the missionaries in a variety of ways. At times we have taught English, worked at a preschool, been the “visiting Americans” to bribe people into visiting the church, played with children, did grounds work, painted walls, built fences, and tagged along in other various ways. I have learned to say, “what do you need me to do?” and then joyfully followed suit. Some people may say this is not exactly a servant’s heart and just obedience, but after a year I see what it has taught me.
During month 6 of the race my teammate gave me some constructive feedback. He said, “Don’t serve out of frustration. Do it in joy or don’t do it at all.” This helped me to serve out of joy instead of obligation. Every time I was asked to help or felt a pull to serve my teammates, I checked my motive. Yes, it was our job to do whatever was asked by our contact, but what gave me a servant’s heart was the joy with which I worked.
I believe Jesus calls us to action but the results are not always seen. Every conversation we have leaves an impression. We may not see the ripple effect in the moment, but the ripple will show up eventually. We must continue to act and serve those around us with joy, in order to show God’s love to others.
