“Do you feel like you’re on the World Race yet?”
Traveling through airports, taking busses, sleeping on a church floor, all things that I have done before. It still didn’t feel that much different yet. Until 1:00 am. Unlike the rest of the X Squad men, I HATE air conditioning. I work outside in the heat, so I prefer the natural cool of an open window as I sleep. I wake up with frost on my toes and a shiver in my chest; my clock reads 13:03. With my sleeping bag unavailable I know I won’t be able to go back to sleep being this cold. I selfishly want to turn the air off and open a window, but instead I pick up my sleeping mat and walk outside. I spend a few minutes playing with the black kitten that lives at the church before laying under the stars.
A mellow pink-orange sunset with a refreshing breeze stirs me awake at 5:30 am, and I explore the property. I find a bench in the garden of apple, pear, and plum trees where I decide to sit down and talk to God. I thank Him for this crazy journey He has called me to, though I still couldn’t wrap my head around all that is ahead of me. I ask Him to bless our squad with comfort, strength, and boldness to make the hope and love and truth of Jesus known this year. I ask the Lord to keep us focused on Him first in all things that we do. Then I ask Him to talk to me, and I thank Him for His word. He guides my heart to Isaiah 40 (I love when He talks to me through the book that I was middle-named after). Two excerpts stuck out to me:
“A voice of one calling: ‘In the wilderness prepare a way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the rough and rugged places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all the people will see together. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken: Cry out.’ And I said ‘What shall I cry?’ ‘All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.’”
-Isaiah 40:3-8
“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and His understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young people stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.”
-Isaiah 40:28-31
Pretty prophetic for the journey ahead of us, I’d say. This was really cool, and I was really excited. Then it got put to the test. Our first tasks of the day would follow: get a sim card for our local Serbian calls, find a bus that takes us to the big station, so we can catch another bus from Novi Sad to Sombor. Sounds easy enough right? Sure! Until not many people speak any English, and I can’t read Serbian. Just a little stressful. Then, on top of the language barrier, we are 13 very out of place Americans with 60 lbs of backpack on our fronts and backs. We look like a silly burden too silly and burdensome to help.
Luckily, God provided some nice truck drivers, old men, generous bus drivers, and 16 year olds who paid enough attention in their English Language class. We navigated a mess of wrong directions, and nonexistent bus stops, and bus drivers who don’t seem to want silly Americans with giant back packs to board and over crowd it. With a stressed mind, sore shoulders, and a sweat soaked outfit, I now know what the Prophet Isaiah was talking with God about. We are young, and the mission to make Jesus known can definitely start off with some stumbling and weariness, but the Lord will pick us back up and restore our strength and comfort. I am so excited to see how He works through us this month in Sombor, and I am so excited that we will get to repeat this cycle for the Lord 10 more times in 10 more countries. I am excited because He is so good, He is so faithful, and His love endures forever.
