I recently read something that likened doing ministry to white water rafting. The stories that get told, the highlights, are the rapids. But the majority of the time is spent drifting along in the calm parts. The rapids are exhilarating and it’s great to focus on them sometimes, but the in-between sections are just as necessary. It’s those long periods that give us time to rest and prepare for the next set of rapids.
What I’ve been learning lately is that this time in my life is one of those calm water moments. It’s hard to accept because I wanted to travel the world to help others and be the hands, feet, and voice of Jesus. Unfortunately, we don’t do a lot of radical ministry here. To be honest, a lot of days it doesn’t even feel like we’re missionaries. It’s a hard truth and one I’ve spent a lot of time trying to deal with.
When I found the metaphor of the river, I began to understand. As strange or impractical though it may seem to me, my time in El Salvador right now is not a rapid in the river. It seems that God has not called me here necessarily to do huge miracles, but instead to simply be with Him. Certainly, there are rapids coming. God has given me this time to prepare myself for them. So instead of being bitter and always thinking forward to them, I can rest and build myself up so that when they do come, I am well-equipped to handle them.
It took me a long time to get to this point. I’ve always struggled with the idea of being content in the present moment, especially if in the present moment it doesn’t feel like I’m working for God’s kingdom. After all, the Bible is full of verses like Hebrews 12:1, telling us to run the “race marked out for us”. If the Bible tells us to go out and do, how can I be happy when there isn’t anything to do? But the Bible also says, “Be still, and know that I am God”. I should know; I’ve often said that this is my favorite verse. The quiet moments are just as important, if not more, than the hectic ones. Being with God is necessary to work for God.
So what does it look like to be a missionary right now? Apparently it’s not entirely about action. But being a Christian, being a missionary, isn’t passive. It’s an active lifestyle: one we have to choose every moment of every day.
I’ve been thinking a lot about choice recently. How we can easily spend our days living just like the rest of the world: complaining, criticizing, judging. Or we can make an active choice to look for God in every moment. And by every moment, I really do mean every moment. Not just in the ones with great beauty or when miracles happen, but in the simple ones, too.
If He’s giving me this time to strengthen my faith and learn how to focus on Him in every moment, then I will. I won’t worry about what the coming months will look like. Exciting though those rapids may be, I may be missing some beautiful scenery if I don’t take the time to appreciate where I am.
“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” – Matthew 6:27
