Our path to grow this month entails us writing a blog for a team mate. Today my former team leader walked up and told me he wrote a blog for me. He is absolutely amazing, courageous, smart, and humble man. He has become on of my best friends. Thank you so much John, and here is what he said:
If I could sum up Will Schneider in one word it would be the word intentional. Since I met him about a year ago at training camp, he has demonstrated intentionality in multiple areas of his life. At training camp, I remember him standing out above others because he really sought to get to know me in ways that really just stood out to me. He would ask me so many questions about my life, my story, and even the more real questions like what I struggled with. Then, after training camp was over, I remember him calling me a couple of times and having some really deep conversations about God and life and it was because of his intentionality in pursuing a relationship with me even at a stage in my life that I was still quite unintentional.
When the race started, I realized that he isn’t only intentional in cultivating a relationship with me, but he is also intentional in cultivating relationships with people we are minister to. This man, alongside with Joseph Cronin proceeded to spend that first month in Colombia discipline a group of guys recovering from drug addiction in bible studies all of which was completely independent from the given ministry our hosts gave us. That first month, God used Will and his intentionality in investing in people to grow my intentionality and my pursuit of people. I could keep giving countless examples of how I have seen God work through Wills intentionality and love for others and how it’s inspired me to seek out people with more intentionality, however, I also want to talk about another blessing my brother Will has been to my life.
The blessing I am talking about is the blessing of fearlessness and adventure. I will never forget hearing him grab a bullhorn on the streets of Colombia and start speaking about Jesus on the streets of Medellin and the level of terror I felt about even doing anything like that, only to realize that I would be doing something very similar on the streets of Guayaquil, Ecuador only a month later. When I think of how God has used Will to inspire me to action, I think of him as a pioneer blazing the trail or doing the thing I am afraid to do, only for God to then call me into the very same thing immediately after. Another memory I will never forget is during our time in Uganda when we were walking the streets of what basically felt like a slum in Kampala and we found this place where a big group of guys were just playing pool and he felt a tug to go talk to them about Jesus. I looked at them pretty nervous and asked him , are you sure you want to go talk to them? With a gleam in his eyes, he responded why not? I reluctantly followed him to this pretty sketchy looking tent with some guys gathered around a pool table and as we approached them they all stopped what they were doing and just stared at us. We were about as out of place as lily among thorns, but Will boldly stepped up and said we just want to watch and get to know you guys and just like that we were accepted into their friend group. We stayed there for awhile asking questions and then one of the guys asked us if we were going to share with him the good news about Jesus and we had the opportunity to tell him and the group of guys the gospel. We built a relationship with him and visited him almost everyday after that. It’s adventurous memories like this, that I will never forget and that show me that our God has no bounds or limits. He can touch anyone’s life at any time through anyone he chooses with no regard for race, social background, language or any other huge barrier you could think of. There are no limits for God. The only limit to God using you is your own disobedience and even then he still uses you for his purpose, but you miss out on the blessing God had for you had you obeyed. This past year, God used Will to teach me what he could do through a man who is intentional and fearless and he has inspired me to take steps to become that man.
