Well for me this was not a single
experience where I felt like I was “called” out to the missions field. When I
look back and think about it, I have been preparing and being prepared for
missions work for my entire life. I have been raised in a strong Christian home
and had the great blessing of being in a church that trained me well as I grew
up. I have been growing closer to God through various experiences and I believe
that they have led me to the point where I can now go out and minister in a
larger world than the one in which I have so far been functioning. Here’s an example or two.
I have been given musical training
from an early age by my parents but it was the way that they trained me to
“use” my talent and skill that really factors in here. We played concerts and
special events to be sure, but every concert we ever prepared, my Dad would
take us to nursing homes and have us perform for the elderly and those unable
to live on their own. After we finished playing, he would have us go around to
the residents and fellowship with them before we would pack anything up to
leave. It taught me from the very start that my abilities were given to me by
God as an avenue to spread his love and joy to others rather than as a way of
building myself up and that it is not even about my specific abilities, but how
I can use them for God’s purpose that is important.
I have always loved physical
activity and being outdoors. I became an Eagle Scout through the Boy Scout
organization in my early teenage years and I had many experiences that
challenged my leadership abilities, socialization skills, and also my own
personal stamina. Not only learning outdoorsman and survival skills, but working
out problems in a team environment both as a team member and as the team leader
went a long way in developing me into the person I am today. I was also able to
gain experience and practice teaching and connecting to younger individuals
whom I was responsible to train. I have
already reaped benefits of these skills in various jobs I’ve held and am now
excited to translate them more into a missions setting.
I give these specific examples of
experiences to give an idea of how I feel that I have been led to this missions
team and journey. I know that in my own spiritual life I am in need of
experiences that stretch me and force me to rely more solely on God. I don’t
know if I will use my musical skills specifically on this trip but I do know
that I have been equipped by the experiences of playing in nursing homes with a
serviceable heart, and skills at relating to the more downtrodden of God’s
children. I can see that my scouting experience has given me leadership and
social practice that will be an asset on a team like this one, and that the
outdoor and survival skills that I have will benefit me and hopefully even
others while in the field. I am not trying to brag or anything like that about
all the skills I have or the things I’ve done. Everything I have accomplished
is by God’s mercy and his leading and all the credit for any of it must be his.
I am simply trying to say that when I heard about this trip, all these things,
my previous missions experiences (i.e. Haiti) coupled with my innate desire for
adventure and to travel, just clicked together and I saw that God had prepared
me to do something like this and that it was what I should do.
