I leave home in two weeks.
I, Lindsay Sherburn, leave my home for a year-long trip in two weeks’ time.
TWO WEEKS.
I’ve always liked the quote “God doesn’t call the prepared but, rather, He prepares the called.” I think it’s the Average Joe’s way of trying to comprehend how God works. I sure don’t know why He asks me to do half of the things I feel called to do when there seems to be hundreds of others more qualified for the task. I’m just some random girl from a state known for corn, who gets overwhelmed in crowds, gasps way too loudly in movie theatres, and still uses bunny-ears to tie her shoes. Not exactly what the experts would peg for a world-changer.
And yet, to my utter amazement, He’s asked me to be moved. He’s called me out. Honestly, I still think it’s sometimes a bit absurd. If I were God, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t use some introvert with a penchant for sarcasm as a tool to win the nations. Thankfully, I’m not God. (In case any of you had any doubts.)
The beauty I’ve found in all of this is in my attempt to understand why He works in this way. Sure, I think God likes to show off. Not in our prideful, human understanding of the concept. But as God of the Universe, what better way to remind His creation of His power than to make extraordinary things come out of the most common places?
I also believe God sends out the least likely of His disciples out of a sheer desire to show us His love. Don’t we always root for the underdog? Doesn’t a story about someone rising from the ashes to success often bring us to tears? I believe God knows that the hearts of those unaccustomed to fame and ease are the very ones that are the easiest to break and mold. He calls those who are seemingly unprepared because, in reality, they are the most prepared to be changed.
Out of His love for us, God uses us to bring glory to Himself.
So, no, after several months of planning and having all of my necessary funds now at hand, I still don’t feel ready for what I’m about to do. I still have moments of doubt, fear and slight hysteria. My sleeping bag is too big, my bangs are too high-maintenance, and my lack of depth perception still leads me straight into walls. Literally. But I am in constant awe and gratitude that God, my Abba, would choose me to spread His love.
In two weeks’ time I will say goodbye to my family and friends and begin my journey south for Launch. In three weeks I will board a plane with my new family for a land I only know about from Google searches. I will walk in the footsteps of the many who have gone behind me. I will choose, every moment of every day, to let Him break and remake me more into a person in the likeness of Christ. And I, one of the most unlikely of disciples, will be sent out into the nations.
Ready or not, here I come.
