3 Things Learned on the Mission Field

I am now entering month 9 of my 9-month journey on the World Race. It’s crazy to think back to our first night in Ecuador. It feels like some long lost dream from my childhood. Foggy and unclear. I remember the long, hard days of working construction in the mountains before coming home to a comfortable living room, looking around at all these people, and thinking to myself nine months with these amazing people is going to be so much fun. Now, looking back, I wasn’t wrong. It has been a blast, but it isn’t exactly what I expected either. I never expected deep community. I never expected so much of God. I never expected to be so intensely impacted by the people that I thought I was ministering to, but as it turns out, were ministering to me. So here are three things I have learned on the mission field:

1. God is so much bigger than you think.

Put your hand on top of your head. Now, hold out your hand in front of you and look at it. You can hold your mind in your hand, but do not expect to be able to hold God in that hand as well. Far too often we live our daily lives thinking that we have a pretty good understanding of God and “that’s good enough for me.” But what I have learned is that He is so incredibly vast and magnificent that everyday is an opportunity to see something new. Everyday we get to wake up and seek out a new understanding of our Lord. He is unchanging and yet so much bigger, and for all of eternity we will find Him new. God has performed miracles in my time here of searching Him out. Yes, the simple yet grand miracles of me being alive, of someone providing for me, or me being in the right place at the right time. But He has also done the big stuff. To name a few: my ribs were broken and after my team anointed and prayed over me- they were fully healed; Joshua’s varicose veins that he struggled with for years were fully healed; Cat got fully funded in an amazing way; our team saw a man’s shattered leg healed; I once spoke and fully understood Spanish when talking with a man in our village when my parents were there in Guatemala. He has redeemed in my eyes my self-worth, my talents, and His giftings in me. There are multiple accounts of God moving here, and I try to make sure to praise Him for the little things and the big things.

2. Community is incredibly important.

I never knew the extent to which two people can relate and connect. I never realized what it actually feels like to sit in the pit with someone or to have them do the same for me. I didn’t know that I have an impact on people even when I am not paying attention. I’ve really seen how people are so diverse in the way that they act or think. It wasn’t until the Race that I realized that I was a thinker which just blows my mind now because its so obvious. And the fact that other people are lead by their emotions is fascinating to me. And then to come alongside people in their growth and find where we act out in health and unhealth, what God says to be true about each other, affirming and correcting each other  in love and patience, receiving criticism with thankfulness and grace- it has been so incredibly eye-opening. The funny thing about constantly living with large groups of people for almost a year is you become more self-aware. It’s kind of ironic. And you do not understand how un-self-aware you were until you are. I have definitely seen the impact of healthy community and what Christ intended the church to be.

3. To truly follow Jesus, you cannot be lukewarm.

Revelation 3:15-16 says,

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm- neither hot nor cold- I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

I have realized that Jesus deserves it all. He wants me to be on fire. My undignified worship, my unapologetic prayers, my boldness to have faith, my obedience to step out even in my uncomfortability- it is all for Him. There have been many, many times when I have clearly heard the Lord tell me to say something before a certain person or my squad and my heart starts drumming at a million beats per second. I do not want to stand up and say that. It does not seem like the moment. Then in an act of trust, I do. And the Spirit uses me to do more than I could have imagined. He redeems everything in full. All my worries and doubt are turned to joy and thankfulness. All it takes is the choice to obey. It is the gift to look different from everyone else in the world. I have been reading the book “Crazy Love’’ on and off throughout the Race. There are multiple chapters on what it looks like for Christians to be lukewarm and how we should look like if we are acting out of true, unconditional love of our Father. In one part of the book, author Francis Chan says, “There is something wrong if our lives make sense to unbelievers.” I have learned it is so much better to not be the same. It is better to just follow Jesus without worrying what others think. He deserves our love. And discipline comes from devotion. Once you set your eyes above, you can see the truth about yourself. And when you are more self aware, there is the option to obey. To choose in to growth instead of sitting in the brokeness. To choose to be on fire or to sit and be lukewarm.  When you devote to leaning on Christ in all things, all is redeemed. All things are new.

If you feel like there is something that needs to change, if you want to have a bigger understanding of God, if you want to give Him your all- you can. You might say, “But I did this and this.” He doesn’t care. “But how can He forgive me if I can’t forgive myself? How can He love me if I cannot even love others? Where was He when I needed Him? I want to believe, I want to see His glory! That sounds freaking amazing. I want to give Him my praise but it hurts. How?” I have felt that all. I might not know what you are going through. You may be on the mountain top of seasons or the darkest, dingiest cave in the valley. Maybe, you are just in a desert or dry season. All I can say is that like the father in the prodigal son, He is running after you with all his might. No matter what you did, He wants to wrap you in his arms- to celebrate you and throw you a feast. He is so, so proud of you. He is proud of you and He cares for you. It is never too late to start running with Him because His mercies are new every morning. Just talk to Him. Right now. He wants to reintroduce Himself. And if you ever need to talk or have questions, do not hesitate to reach out. We are a church- a family with the same Dad. Anyways…