Sunday morning we all piled into minivans and headed to
church. We winded up the mountains for
one hour passing by gorgeous waterfalls and palm trees along the way. When we arrived at the church, dozens of
people from the village were waiting to greet us. We all packed into the tiny church building
with them. Those of us who couldn’t fit stayed
outside and listened through the windows.
I was blessed enough to get a seat on the front row directly in front of
the worship leader.
As we began singing in Spanish, it was as if something was
awakened inside me that had been asleep for quite some time. It has been almost ten months since I have
been able to worship in Spanish. There
is something about worshiping in a different language that is so beautiful to
me. It forces me to really think about
the words that I’m singing. I was so
overjoyed to sing familiar songs surrounded by the people and culture that I
love, a culture that the Lord has burdened my heart for.
Seth Barnes got up to speak after worship. The words were
translated into Spanish and then into the native dialect Ch’ol. He talked about our generation finally
awakening to our destiny, and we on the World Race are just the beginning of it. He also addressed the people of this tiny
church in the mountains of Chiapas. He told them that they have a role in the kingdom of God.
They have a purpose and a destiny just like the 55 missionaries
surrounding them. He said that they may
think that they are just living life day to day, but God is using them to reach
the nations, as well.
As he said this to them, I glanced behind me and noticed a
lady in the congregation crying at the words being spoken. Someone was speaking life into her. Someone was giving value to her. I had the feeling that she may have never had
that spoken to her. Now, she was hearing
that she was worth something and had a purpose in God’s kingdom. It blessed me to see that joy on her face.
When we returned in the evening, Andrew Shearman briefly
spoke to our group. One of the things he
said that really stuck with me was that we are to give value to people on this
trip. We are not to tear down or
discourage, but to give value. As I took
all of this in, God began to show me what my purpose was for this trip.
As a media team, our goal is to be a voice for the voiceless,
to “speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves (Prov. 31:8-9).” In other words, we are giving value to people
by telling their stories. People who may
not seem valuable to most of the world.
People who have mostly nothing.
People who live in the worst conditions.
We want to give them value.
Our other purpose is to awaken…awaken the church in America and
awaken our generation. The stories we
will tell are for the church and our generation to see. Our hope is that we can awaken them to what is
out there, to open their eyes to see what God is doing in the world. We want to encourage a generation to step out
and find where the Lord truly wants them to be in this world.
Our team name is “Revolution.” I hope you’re all ready for one.
