The Holy Spirit drives us to do unimaginable things. Actions that seem to simply lack logic and make absolutely no sense to those that have never heard His voice. We hear headlines of Christians going on fasts that mimic that of Jesus until the point of near physical death or selling all their belongings to pursue a modest life answering God’s call and helping the lost in far off foreign lands. The urging and voice of the Holy Spirit is a truly irresistible call to turn down and it comes with the added appeal of seeming reckless and destructive to the people around us (: (lol just kidding it’s pretty awesome let’s be real here!)
That is going to be the foundation for an extremely radical experience we had during Training Camp 2019. Now, before I go any further, let me set the scene for you all. Every day we had authentic food that was centered around the cultural specifics of a different country or region the world that one of the four squads would be working throughout the year. In addition, all of training camp there was a snacks booth that was set up with candy, chips, soda, and sports drinks for purchase that would give us all a taste of home while “away” from home. Y’all we ate crickets and a grey egg at one point, so yeah, this booth was more than necessary!
Anyway, the real importance of the booth was that all the proceeds went to a family on staff that was in need of funds in order to adopt their second child. This extremely sweet couple would work the booth and help make the meals we ate every single day, and they were only a few thousand dollars short of their goal going into our training camp.
This brings us to the title of this story (may or may not be spoilers there so don’t look!!). The kitchen staff decided to get Little Caesar’s pizza for lunch, and they were unable to finish all of it. The extra pizza amounted to one entire 8 piece pie. They had planned to sell the pizza for $2 a slice and give the proceeds to the couple planning on adopting, until someone from the crowd yelled that they would give $20 for the whole pie. This complete joke turned into an old style auction that got out of hand extremely quickly. At first shouting came from all around; “25…30…35…50…55!!” Honestly for most of all of the time it was all fun and games to us. These people were simply so eager for something familiar that they were willing to go to extremes to get it, but there was so much more happening.
The couple stood together with the pizza and joy on their faces. As the number reached 70, they realized what was happening. They began to see their dream coming true through the hunger of a bunch of 20-something-year-olds. I watched as a tear started to squeak out when 85 was confidently shouted from the crowd. I can’t imagine what their excitement must’ve been to have the opportunity to reap the benefits of the snack drive for all the training camps, but now they were handed something else that they could’ve never expected.
Sometimes God puts incredible circumstances in our path that we are simply amazed by. We simply can’t begin to understand what we did to deserve such an amazing opportunity. And as I looked at the look in their eyes, I saw the gaze of true awe as they saw complete strangers ride the price of this $5 pizza go all the way up to $100. After the pizza was awarded, another member of the squad who scored the pie went up to the couple and handed them an additional $100 saying that it was what the Lord had told her to do.
Let me be the first to say that this kind of behavior is irrational, illogical, and most likely to end you up in an insane asylum rather than traveling the world. Yet, this is the love that God continuously displays. It doesn’t make sense that he gives us a loving family, we don’t deserve a good job or education, and we certainly don’t deserve the luxurious living that all Americans experience on a daily basis compared to other countries. To put it simply, we did NOTHING to earn it, and yet He gives it all freely.
Oh yeah!!
Remember when I said they were few thousand short of their goal? Well, by the end of the training camp they proudly announced that they had raised more than enough fro their goal. And barring paperwork and other legal matters, they could have the opportunity to spend the holidays with their newly adopted child.
