You rumble along in your Land Cruiser after a day full of seeing everything
from Impala to
the King of Beasts itself.
African plain.
You’re at an orphanage,
an adorable African baby is falling
asleep in your arms after a long but
Rewarding day of
bringing Physical Relief and Spiritual Hope to the
kids
orphanage you are staying at.
in the area for a long time and you are able to help feed a whole village.
Bush and you are staying
with one of the wild tribes
introducing Jesus for the first time to their
society.
broken out and you are the middle of seeing Thousands come to Christ
and
Hundreds of others being set free of demonic possession and
I hate to
break it to you, but:
African Isn’t That
Sexy.
Don’t get me wrong.
Those things COULD
happen on your trip to Africa.
And for some people they do.
For the large amounts of people coming with these Expectations of Africa –
They are usually pretty disappointed.
Those Expectations
are rooted in a couple things:
1)
That God is only in the BIG THINGS or that He only cares about the BIG THINGS we do for Him.
2)
That Africa
is the Holy Grail of Missions that
will answer all the deep longings or our soul.
I have had some AMAZING
days in Africa……..
In my two trips here I have been able to feed orphans, provide for widows, preach
at many churches, see people come to Christ, witnessed physical healings and had my soul blessed by the
beautiful worship.
Men and Women I have met giving
their
I have been on two Snorkeling
trips, a Safari , climbed two
mountains and seen incredible beauty all across Africa.
Days. And even Annoying Days.
have done a lot of door to door visitation.
Which can involve having the same conversation you just had at the house before, with a stranger
you just met, as you sit in their house with a translator you’re
not sure is understanding what you’re
saying.
Have you ever eaten a steady diet of Potatoes, Bread, Bannanas, Rice, Beans and Goat meat complete with fat and bone?
What about when everywhere you go –
Kids yell “Mizungu!
How are you?” and then want to have the same boring, limited English conversation you have had a thousand times
before.
Or you can’t walk through town without people gawking, yelling obscene things or
bluntly telling you to give them money
or something you own.
Do
you like looking like a Walking Dollar Sign to everyone you meet?
What
about 6-7 hour church services?
not being able to move your feet in a cramped bus while a butt is in your face
as you travel for 10
Sometimes you sit
around all day because Ministry only last 2
hours.
Sometimes you are
asked to preach with about two minutes
warning.
Sometimes you
pick up a great disease like Malaria,
or get a Parasite or the lovely Ring Worm.
Best of all, you have a good chance of getting things stolen
or robbed at gunpoint.
Like I
said……
Africa Isn’t That Sexy.
The Point Is This:
Wherever you go or Whatever you are
doing.
No matter
how good your intentions are or
how good of
things you are doing.
If Christ isn’t the center and the
MAIN REASON
You will be disappointed and your true expectations
will be revealed.
But if Christ is
THE CENTER and THE REASON
It won’t
matter
Where You Are, What Happens or What You Are Asked
To Do.
Africa might not always be Sexy
But if you let it – It will teach you that.
