We were asked to write a blog about how we felt before leaving on this mission trip. Here is what I’m expecting…
Prior to training camp I was a little worried about whether I would like my teammates, I mean I have to spend an entire year with these people…I was just praying they weren’t freaks. I was worried about how my holiness would compare to my teammates. I think I was most scared of how God would change my life…
Was I willing to completely give everything over to Him, to live only for Him, and to make Christ and Him crucified my only boast?
The first night of training the leaders asked us several questions as we trekked through the woods in silence with only a small torch of light.
“Are you willing to lay down your expectations of your teammates for who they might be?”
“Are you willing to allow your perception of who God is to be transformed into something you might not expect?” Now this is tough..I love to see God in a loving light, the creator of the universe, our heavenly father, the lover of our souls, the light in the darkness; but what about God revealing himself as a just God when I am wrong or when I choose my own will over His, or in the midst of suffering.. Am I still willing to call Him great, almighty, and sovereign during the storms?
“Are you willing to allow God’s definition of adventure replace your own?”
This is another challenging question..I would love to go into this year and lead 20 people to a relationship in Christ, work alongside the gypsies in Romania, and play with orphans in Africa but what if God’s plan only involves me sowing His seeds in a way I might consider boring? I spoke with a previous world racer who said that his group sorted receipts for a business for an entire month–that was their ministry… i am guessing that there will be times this year where I will want to feel more useful than I will feel.
I pray that over the next year I will put my own expectations aside (at least as much as humanly possible) and allow God to move, on His terms, in a huge way.
Please pray that I allow God to use me in whatever way He pleases!
