As I am embarking on this missionary journey, I’m finding myself more and more drawn to Paul’s writings. I’ll be honest, I never really put all of his books together, I just plucked out verses. But once you combine them, you can see not only the depth of his suffering, but also the depth of joy that he has for the gospel. My current favorite verses of his are from 2 Corinthians 4, specifically verses 16-18.
Paul, a man who has survived prison, 3 shipwrecks, stoning, 5 sets of 39 lashes, and beaten with rods, is calling those sufferings “light afflictions?” Contrast this with Americans who think cold coffee and freeway traffic have “wrecked their whole day!” Who am I to say that spending 11 months in a tent, travelling around the world, while spreading the Gospel is too great a sacrifice in light of Paul’s suffering? Instead, I should be thanking God for the opportunity to meet His people from around the world while seeing His beautiful creation. Don’t get me wrong; I will be giving up my family, comforts, and a job. But compared with the great sacrifice of Christ on the cross, I can only rejoice at the opportunity to serve those that God has called me to serve.
So, am I willing to give up everything? To be honest, in theory I am willing. But, when it comes to actually walking that commitment, I have a lot more of doubting Thomas in me than I have of Paul. God is still working on my heart. Don’t get me wrong, that doesn’t mean that I’m not going on the WR. I am. But I am trusting God to finish preparing my heart. For now, I continue walking.
