When I was younger, I thought the world revolved around me. My parents were there to guide me and grow me – a.k.a cook a few meals and drive me to soccer practice, my older sister was there to set really high standards and my younger sister was there to bug me.
As I got older, things started to change. Conversations on the phone stopped being all about me and I realized there was life on the other end. And their life, usually my mom or older sister, didn't revolve around me — but why were they so interested in what I was doing? Interested in giving me advice and simply listening? What made them care so much?
In college, I started to find good friends and as I matured, my friendships did as well. We loved each other well, gave advice and helped one another grow without even realizing it.
Starting with phone conversations from family to late night talks in college – I'd inadvertently found myself caught in a cycle of discipleship that continues to develop itself with maturity and life lessons.
~*~
In South Africa, one of the very first messages given at lighthouse family church was about discipleship – who are you discipling?
Well, this month it would be the kids at HDC. We go there everyday and spend time learning about them and loving them. We play with them, teach and discipline them, and listen to their 40 minute explanations of the latest x-men movie.
So, they were my little brothers and sisters for the months. The ones I asked questions to, and guided with advice and love. They were the ones I could pour all my energy into, and they grabbed onto it without letting go.
What I didn't realize is how much I was craving the other side of the conversation. The one where I had people, other than family and friends a world away, ask me questions, give advice and listen to my stories. And it was the members of Lighthouse Family Church, who made it their mission to love and disciple us any way they could, and by doing so they welcomed us into a family and blessed us more than I can express.
We had Faith and Carol, our South African mama's, who asked the questions, prayed for us, gave comfort and generously loved us this month.
They gave us a welcoming braai (BBQ) with great food, worship, guitar, candles, and cheetos. A few of my favorite things all bundled into one night around the fire.
We were also part of a church community group, who invited us over for Bible studies and braai's, completed with an overwhelming feeling of comfort, the cutest children and a zonkey (½ zebra, ½ donkey). So cool.
On Friday and Saturday nights we were a part of middle school and high school youth groups, where we were surrounded with brothers and sisters to hang out and goof around with.
We led games and a talk or two, had a barn dance and a sleepover with hot chocolate and girl talk, where we gave advice to the younger girls and they had the chance to ask us questions about life.
We worshipped with them, dancing and jumping up and down with our arms around each other, singing Jabulani, Jabulani, Africa. God bless Africa!
We spent time praying for them when the nights started to dwindle down and on our last night, everyone in Firehouse circled around our team, put their hands on our shoulders, and prayed for us.
Before coming to Port Elizabeth, I prayed that it would be a month of light and blessings. And it was inexpressibly more than that.
God loved us so well through Lighthouse Church and showed me how He wants His family to work in a church body. A cycle of discipleship and growth with the members constantly teaching each other life lessons from past experiences.
He showed me that it's O.K to ask for help and that discipleship is a two way street and not something that can be outgrown.
And maybe I'm only going along with the street analogy because we've been on a bus for 22 hours, but if discipleship is a two way street and the church is one family, I think it's time we explore past coffee on Sunday mornings and pack in for a great, big family road trip.
