A couple of days ago I was exhausted. There was no energy left in me, I was burned out. I realized that I had been thinking that I had to earn the right to be a child of God. It wasn't by his grace and love but by my own actions that I belonged to him. I was thinking: "God, I just want to belong to your family. I am trying so hard. Why can't I just belong to you?" Then I listed up all the things that I was doing. Pouring into the children here, talking with our hosts, translating, watching out for the women in my team, writing blogs, writing with friends and family, being there for my girlfriend, reading my bible, investing in prayer, praying for others, and so on. And when I had said these things, it hit me. A wave of exhaustion went through me and I was empty. The next day I almost couldn't do any ministry. I wasn't able to talk to anybody but my teammates. Talking Spanish, picking up children, asking the youth about there life, there was no way I could do any of that. I slept for 8 hours during the night, 3 more after lunch, and still felt the same. I picked up my bible and read Mark 1. What had Jesus been up to? And I was blown away. Jesus was on the World Race. And he had what it takes.
1. Training Camp
We were in a camp in Georgia. We slept in tents and in a bus, ate fish head soup, had to deal with our past. Alumni racers coached us and spoke life into us.
Jesus was in the desert for 40 days. There wasn't any food or drink. There was lots of sun and dirt. He fought the devil, lived among animals, and his coaches were angels. (Mark 1, 13)
2. Team
We have a team of believers. We do worship, share testimonies pray for and with each other, hang out. We get close and become friends. Sometimes we annoy each other.
Jesus was leading a team of 13. Not many of them had more than grade school education, few could read or write. They were fishermen. Probably made inappropriate jokes and comments all the time. There was nobody there with his level of intellectualism or wisdom. Maybe they didn't even have a relationship with God when Jesus called them to follow Him. And still, they were His teammates. He was always around them. They shared the glorious moments of Jesus' VIP-life with Him. But in danger, they all left him alone. (Mark 14, 50)
3. Ministry
We think it's too much for us. All of those children that want to be on my shoulders and want to play soccer. After some time that gets annoying. Every child seems to think that you are exactly the one who should take care of him or her.
Jesus had masses of hundreds who followed him on every step. They didn't want to be picked up. They put the expectation and the pressure on Him to cast out demons and heal them from things they had suffered from their whole life. They wanted him to be the King of Israel. He was exactly the one who should change their life and country. (Mark 1, 32-34)
4. Accommodation
We sleep in beds, tents, hammocks and buses. We miss warm water and wonder why we cannot flush toilet paper.
Jesus was homeless. He probably used newspapers as his blanket. Nobody organized anything for him. He had never seen a shower from the inside.
5. Looking for comfort
When we get to a new church, we check how beds and showers are. After a long time of traveling, we need rest in order to be ready for the next month.
Jesus didn't spend a single thought on His accommodations. He entered a town and went straight into the synagogue and preached. (Mark 1,21)
6. Food
We eat lots of rice. Sometimes we get the same food everyday for weeks. And we complain about it. We deserve better. And we forget our hosts. They had been cooking for us for hours. But the first thing that comes to our mind is disappointment Man, a burger would be good.
Jesus didn't have people who cooked for him. He never knew what his next meal would be, let alone when. Maybe tomorrow? But when He came to houses, he talked. He talked to guys who had betrayed every single persons of their home town. He talked to prostitutes. He didn't want Martha to cook for him. He wanted to talk to her and to get to know her instead of eating her food. We should have that attitude. Our bodies need food, but our heart and soul reach out for our hosts.
7. Time off
We have one day off every week. And free time during the day. We use it to blog, read, play music, talk, take naps. And that time is important to us.
Jesus didn't have any scheduled time off. People came to Him at sunset and He healed all of them without complaining. (Mark 1, 32-34). Nicodemus came to Him around midnight and Jesus talked to him about salvation and invested in him. (John 3,1-21)
8. Transportation
Riding in the back of pick-up trucks is kind of cool. Sitting next to chicken not as much. Why are the drivers shouting where they are driving? Why are they honking so much? Don't they know about traffic rules? We make fun of cars, buses and their drivers.
Jesus walked everywhere He went. Probably barefoot. No Chacos. Rain or sunshine, he had no choice. And he didn't complain or make fun of it because He had chosen to live that way.
9. Possesions
We live out of a backpack. We carry our life in our bags. We don't have much. Maybe 2 sets of clothes. Still there is always food for us. Still we have credit cards and bank accounts at home. And just with that, we still belong to the richest 10% of the world population. We have A LOT with us on the Race, even if we don't believe that ourselves. We should probably compare ourselves to children on the street and not to our friends at home.
Jesus didn't have anything. He had to rely on His Father every day in order to survive.
10. Leaving things behind
We don't actually leave things behind, we put them on hold for a year. Friends, family, cars, clothes, money. I will be back in December!
Jesus left everything behind. As the oldest son he would carried on his dad's profession and would have owned the carpenter store. That was His responsibility to His family. But He left. And called His disciples to do exactly the same. (Mark 1, 20)
11. Purpose of the journey
For us it is a time of preparation. We spend time with God, leave our past behind, receive a calling from God. We are gone for a year. We leave to come back as different persons and use what we learned for our future life.
Jesus set out to die. He was gone for three years. There was no hope of getting back to His old life and friends and family again for him. Every day brought Him closer to being killed in one of the most cruel ways. Some crucifixions took three days, with nails in feet and hands. Hungry birds finished up the work. That was His destination.
"How did He do that?" I was still in my bed, reading the Gospel of Mark. "I would never have the energy to do that." We have to remember that Jesus was human. He was God, but in a completely human body. Jesus had blisters from walking, He needed sleep, He had diarrhea Completely human. I never saw a person who lived a better life than Jesus. I never saw anybody who had more strength, authority, wisdom, love, character and courage. And Jesus said about himself:
"I do nothing by my own initiative.." (John 8,28)
"The Son can do nothing of Himself." (John 5,19)
Jesus is the only person that I ever heard say that.
So where did he get that strength? In Mark 1,35 we can read that Jesus got up "early in the morning, while it was still very dark" and went to pray. I once heard that old people are such good listeners because they already lived their life. They are not craving things anymore, they don't need much anymore. Jesus was the same way. He lived every day in prayer. And during His time of prayer He got acceptance rest, strength, a vision for the day and His life, love. All the things that we try to get from other persons during the day. And if we don't get them it affects us. Jesus got it all from God. He was intentional about time with His Father. He took it. It didn't matter to him what his disciples thought. It didn't matter to Him that His parents were worried about Him when He disappeared as a 12-year-old. He didn't explain Himself. He didn't justify it, He didn't defend himself. He didn't make sure that other people were okay with Him gone. During the day He only existed for God and others. He didn't think about Himself or seek to fill His needs. But He knew how desperately He needed His time with God. And when it came to that, He just took it. If other people didn't understand it then explaining it to them wouldn't be of any help. He lived completely in His relationship with God and got everything He needed from it.
The World Race is a big thing. It is a tough year. But it won't be harder than Jesus' life. If we ask God to change us to be more like Jesus, we shouldn't be surprised if God does that by asking us to live more like Jesus.
