The problem with feeling safe.
Safety. It’s a word that encompasses (what I perceive to be) many American’s ideal lifestyle. I want to live in a safe place. I want to feel financially secure. I want to be responsible, get married, have kids and put my future kids in private Christian school to protect them from all the rude 10 year olds that might bully them for carrying a One Direction lunchbox. These thoughts cross my mind constantly… well not the lunchbox so much but everything else for sure!
Alone, these things are not bad things but my human nature compels me to place these safe thoughts above the calling which God has put on my life…which is not so good. Sitting in this place has left me pleading with God to “let” me work at home or in Pittsburgh for a couple years, saving money, going to school, finding a part time job and getting involved in an awesome church that I can be a part of and disciple others. Sounds good right? Of course it does!!! That life sounds awesome. That life would make my family happy, my friends happy and ME happy. I could spend more time hanging out with my little brother, help my sister out with her college math classes, enjoy a nice dinner out every once in a while with my best friends and even make it to some college football games on a consistent basis.
As I prayed about this plan, I never felt like it was a bad plan. I never felt convicted, never felt like God was telling me “No”….instead, I came to the conclusion that I had a choice. The Lord is so good to me that he gave me the ability to choose between what I want for myself and what he has for my life. To be honest, several of my world race months have been spent justifying my thoughts to God and seeking his approval to go ahead and find a mailbox in the US to call my own…all while trying to disguise it as something other than disobedience to the call to international missions he gave me when I was in 10th grade. But that’s what it is. I know, in my heart, that filling my time with anything other than a radical “yes” to help the unreached would go against the fact that I have been given task (something my amazing contact in Romania, Raul, reminded me of time and time again during my time serving alongside him and Hope church in month 4 of my World Race). This last year, I’ve traveled the world spending time with various people groups and although it hasn’t been easy or comfortable it has been so so good in SO many ways, one of which is because it has given me the opportunity to better understand what my giftings are and how they can best be used here on earth.
That being said, I must apologize because even in my last blog I was still trying to hang on to the safety of not committing to any longterm international positions and was definitely not walking in knowledge of my giftings. In fact, although my intentions of going to CGA and training were good, the blog itself was an attempt to continue hiding behind evasiveness, being too stubborn to simply say what God has truly been asking me to do. So, without fear or trying to please those around me I want you all to know exactly what my ‘Jonah trip to Nineva’ looks like these next few years:
God willing, this fall I will be attending CGA (the discipleship school in Georgia I talked about in my last blog). There, I will enter into the missions track for a semester and be trained under long term missionaries in preparation for a move to India this coming January. When I visited India this past November, God gave me a heart for the people there BIG TIME (you can read more about that in my India blog).
During this month in India, which was an incredibly difficult yet rewarding month, I realized that I have been blessed beyond belief to be a part of the church in America. I grew up in an incredible youth group with the most selfless youth leaders known to mankind (shout-out the Duncans!), I went to summer camps and had numerous opportunities to talk openly with family and friends. I’ve been a member of The Summit Church in North Carolina for 5 years, led by J.D Greear one of the most humble, insanely intelligent pastors I’ve ever encountered and I’m supported by an amazing small group and group of prayer warriors. And I’ve been able to embrace all of these blessings bestowed upon me openly, without fear of being cast out or ostracized for my beliefs.
In addition, during my time in India…I had time to ponder a question which has stuck with me for the last 6 months and has played a role in my desire to go back to this part of the world…’What if I wasn’t born in America, but instead was born in India?’ My life would indeed look much, much different. My conclusion has been that I must have been given the testimony I have in order to go to my brothers and sisters in India and extend the grace and love to them which I have been extended by my father and those in my life during my 23 years on this earth.
As you can see in the picture below, India is home to 1,944 of the 6,600 unreached people groups in the world. There is such a HUGE need for action in this country and with a billion people, I feel confident that I would never run out of people to reach out to, orphans to love or windows to encourage AND there would be plenty of opportunities for you guys to come visit and maybe bring a youth group or church group for a short term trip to serve alongside me and my team! #hiddenperks
.png)
With your help and support…I am ready to go, I am ready to be sent but this time as a long term missionary dedicating my time to one nation. Instead of running the other way, instead of embracing the comfortable choices, the safest path, I will be part of a team that currently consists of just four people. Four people that are excited and ready to reach out to the poor, forgotten and fatherless…we will be moving to south India to start a missions base working alongside an Indian local missions organization. I’m hoping to put my clean water resources degree to good use by implementing some natural clean water filters into the local churches. It won’t be glamorous, It will be hard at times and honestly I’m already a bit scared but beyond a shadow of a doubt I know that this is what God’s path for is and because of his promise in Jeremiah 29:11 “11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. “
I can rest easy knowing that it will far exceed the safe plans I created for myself. My prayer is that you would in some way be encouraged by this journey of understanding that God has taken me through these last 11 months and see too that whether you are in India, Africa, America or elsewhere, we are all given the choice to choose the life we live. What will your choice be?
