I have told you guys in my previous blog what ministry will look like this month for my team. But, in case you didn’t get a chance to read it yet, I will give you a little summary. My team is working with a host that is getting ready to open a hospice very soon. Our job this month is to help prepare the hospice and also help remodel a thrift shop that will support it. On our first day of ministry, our host took us to the hospice. He showed us around the village which only has a population of about 500 people. Then three of my team members including myself cleaned the whole place while the other two sorted through medication. Can I just say sometimes the best time to worship God is while you’re cleaning a toilet? Our host’s wife is a doctor, and he is a social worker. But, he also does wood work as a side job to support the hospice.
There is something so special about this couple. The reason why they want to open a hospice is because they want to give hope to the hopeless even during their final moments. Their faith in God is unbelievable. They never ask for money for the hospice or anything like that because they know God will provide. They’re a true example of what it’s like to fully depend on God and give Him total control over our lives and plans. You might think since the wife is a doctor she makes a lot of money, but she told us at some point doctors were the lowest paid employees. But, they both just have a huge heart for sharing hope and loving people. Our host told us it is a strange concept for people to understand why someone would want to help them for free.
On our second day of ministry, we went to the thrift shop to help lay a floor. None of us girls have laid floors before so this was a new experience for all of us. Our ministry host is the most patient and encouraging teacher. He was kind enough to teach us how to lay a floor, and not only did he show us how to do it, but he was right alongside us working. He let us use his power tools and when we made mistakes he would say, “It’s okay,” and then show us the right way to do it. It took five girls less than two days to lay an entire room. Teamwork does really make the dream work, I guess!
You see, the part I am most excited about is not laying a floor, having an awesome ministry host, etc; what I am most excited about is the heart behind it. Whenever I tell my testimony to people, I also like to tell them that my story is a story of hope and also a reminder how God never forgets His children. I was once without hope and felt like I wasn’t worth going all the trouble to be adopted. I have questioned my worth over and over throughout my life. I didn’t think I was going to find a family that would love me the way they love their biological children or even care enough to give me an opportunity to reach my full potential in life. I felt lost and confused. But, God has given me a family I literally love with everything that I have. On the race people ask me what the hardest part about being on the race is, and my answer 99% of the time is not having my family by my side. But, The World Race is a great place to learn to trust others and learn to rely on each other. Throughout the years God has taught me to be hopeful and I have seen the fruit of that. So, when I see a person dedicate their energy, time, and everything else in order to bring other people hope, I get excited. If you can shed a little bit of sunshine into someone else’s life especially when they are feeling they have nothing else left to live for, why not do it?! Why not be the person that brings hope into other people’s lives? I love that God has put the desire in my ministry host’s heart to be such a person.
As followers of Christ, sometimes what we do might not make sense to other people. Sometimes our ideas to serve and love others unconditionally might sound crazy. But, Christ didn’t care about being judged. He brought light to people’s lives. He brought hope to the broken, the sick, and the forgotten. Obviously, we can’t do everything that Jesus has done, but we could try and love those around us and help them understand, even if all else fails in life, they can still have hope in Christ.
I will not be here by the time the shop or the hospice opens. But, knowing what this place is going to be used for makes my heart very happy. Our ministry host said the fact we are here helping is a miracle, because they need to get the thrift shop ready soon, but they don’t have the workers they need because they can’t afford to pay anyone. It is funny how everything works out perfectly in God’s timing.
