Zealand. It is weird to type and
even weirder to say. I still don’t
think the true gravity of what we are about to undertake has really hit
anyone. After months of talk this
11 month journey has finally become action. I have done a really bad job of blogging up to this point,
but that is all about to change dramatically. The truth is, having a blog is hard and I have been
procrastinating. A lot. Regardless of whether or not anyone
actually reads this, knowing that it will be published into the annals of the
world wide web forever is a bit intimidating. I want to write something really profound that makes people
think, “I’ve never thought about that – maybe that’s something that only people
preparing for international mission work think. ” Well, it doesn’t work like that and my thoughts are no more
profound or enlightened than anyone elses. But I’ve decided that I need to loosen up my filter and just
let it all out. I have no doubt
that even if I never rattle off quotes like Gandhi or Mother Theresa or even
George W. Bush himself, at least I’ll have some good stories to tell that will
hopefully speak for themselves.
As I’m sure you
can imagine, a lot has happened in the last few days. I have gone from Indianapolis to Minneapolis to Los Angeles,
to Auckland, and now I’m in a small farm area on New Zealand’s North Island
called Mata Mata. We are staying
in a camp that was once the sight of the most luxurious spa/resort in New
Zealand…in the 60’s. But that was
before everyone got Meningitis from the hot springs and died. It is safe to say that none of us
confused it for a spa of any kind.
It is now more of a retreat center used for training missionaries. But it is a nice place, and the weather
is tremendous – except that I somehow missed the memo that New Zealand has the
highest levels of UV rays in the world…so I’m being pretty liberal with the SPF
700.
I have experienced a lot of new things in the past
few days, and I can only imagine the kinds of things I will experience in 11
months. I have no idea what to
expect from this trip. The problem
is that I really don’t know what kind of trip it is. Can I even call it a trip? At least upgrade it to a journey – maybe not quite
voyage. Either way, the vast
unknown that exists between me and the next year of my life often seems far
greater than anything I understand about myself, or even the world. This feeling is both tremendously
exciting and incredibly scary.
What I do know is that this is where the Lord wants me. The things He will do through me will
do more than make me a better man.
He will pull me, and you, and the people I meet closer to Him. I am excited about this, whatever you
want to call it. I am excited I
get to share it with people I love, and people who love me, and even people I
don’t know, but who believe in what the Lord has planned. Thank you for all of your prayers –
welcome to New Zealand!
