Honestly, is there anything more annoying than a
sophomore? You know… someone who has
exactly ONE of something under their belt and now believes they have achieved omniscience. They gaze at the poor freshmen and mock their
freshness. Sophomores, in general, get
on my nerves.
I realized at last night’s Mission Team function, (the
ole “Pack and Pray Party,”) that Braxton and I are sophomores. This is our second trip to Guatemala, so we
knew what to expect at this event. I
watched the new guys enter the room with confusion, just as I had done last
year. But pretty soon we were all
working smoothly together to get all the “ministry supplies” packed in large
suitcases that were empty and propped open all over the room. For all you freshmen out there… “ministry
supplies” is code for Dum Dum lollipops,
soccer balls, and art supplies. J Much of what we do in the clinics is
entertain the WELL children while the sick kids get the medical attention they
need. Ministry supplies are donated by
the mission team members, and various other supporters. At the “Pack and Pray Party”, we get ‘em
loaded up and ready to go.
THEN, we pray. I
don’t mean short, polite little prayers.
I mean OTHER people show up and pray over us – BIG TIME. Elders from the church come and anoint each
team member with oil. (If you’ve never
had that experience… it’s incredible.
Participating in a ritual that dates back to the Old Testament makes you
feel part of something MUCH bigger than yourself.) Friends and family come and lay hands on us
while they pray. Together, we rattle the
doors of heaven and let God know that we are ENTIRELY dependent on Him to do
the heavy lifting on this trip. I
absolutely LOVE Pack and Pray Parties.
Most of my Small Group from church showed up to pray with us. THAT was pretty awesome.
I spent some time today pondering my sophomore
status. I decided it would be
appropriate to review in scripture what happened during the apostle Paul’s
SECOND missionary journey. I was hoping
this wasn’t the one with shipwrecks and snake bites. I was relieved to find out it wasn’t. (In case I’ve peaked your curiosity, you can
find the story of his 2nd journey in Acts, 15-18.) Too much happened on that journey for me to
recant in one little blog post, but three things jumped out at me which felt relevant
to MY upcoming sophomore journey.
1) The
mission team members changed. Paul didn’t
travel with Barnabas and Mark this time, like he did on the initial
journey. Silas and Timothy became his
partners for this season. I’ve been
struggling a bit as I processed the reality that THIS year’s team will be
different. We have about ten of the same
folks as last year… but I’ve been really grieving those who won’t be with us
this year. All three of my roommates
from last year are missing on this year’s team.
A close friend from church is missing.
The doctor who beat me by a hair in the ping pong tournament is
missing. But after reading about Paul’s
2nd journey, I feel encouraged.
Silas and Timothy were great partners for Paul, and they were great men
of faith. I will still miss my friends
from last year, but I am looking forward to seeing who God plans to use to enrich
my life this year.
2) In
Philippi, Paul and company had to go by the river to find the saints. They had no synagogue in Philippi, so they
just gathered informally to worship and pray.
WHY did they not have a synagogue?
They didn’t have the required TEN Jewish MEN to qualify for a
synagogue. As I think back to last year’s
clinics in the villages of Guatemala… I saw very few men. Mostly it was single mothers who had been
abandoned. My heart sank as I heard their
stories and realized the depth of their daily struggle just to survive. As I kept reading in Acts this morning, I
loved being reminded that it was by the river – in the company of MOSTLY women
and children– that Lydia emerges as a player in scripture. Just one lady touched by God through a
willing missionary. The ripple effect of
that was HUGE. I’m getting excited.
3) Paul and Silas ended up in prison, shackled
and bruised and bloodied. Ok. That’s not good. Hopefully we won’t endure anything like
that! (I’m sure we won’t Daddy!) What did they do in those shackles at
midnight? They sang and they
worshipped. I’m amazed, challenged, and
inspired by that. Next week we’ll be in
a very remote village in Guatemala from Monday until Wednesday. (did I say VERY
remote?) We won’t have beds or showers or familiar food. And the biggest gasp of all… we won’t have
wireless internet service! HOW will we
bear it?! I imagine we’ll bear it just
fine the FIRST night. But the second
night will begin to feel like shackles to us spoiled Americans. Please pray that we’ll sing and worship like
Paul and Silas.
We depart for Guatemala
Friday morning at 6:15am. Please
remember to pray for us. You know to
pray for all the usual stuff… safety while traveling, safety TO and FROM the
clinics each day, team unity, protection from illness from the food and water, and protection for those
we love back home. But here are two that
are specific to Braxton and to me.
·
For Braxton:
Please pray that God will draw his young heart in a real and powerful way! My prayer for him is Jeremiah 17:7-8 “But
blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in HIM. He will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear WHEN heat comes; its
leaves are always green. It has no
worries IN a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” Notice that the prayer doesn’t ask for
protection from EVERY heat wave and EVERY drought… it just asks that God dwell
in His heart to strengthen Braxton for the road ahead. Loved the word picture of this verse I found this weekend on the farm in Metter.
The Tree
The Roots
·
For
MB: Please pray that I will HEAR God speak to ME and SEE God move in the
villages, in response to our prayers for real individuals. During the prayer at our “anointing service”,
the head Elder prayed a line from MY current memory verse. It was just a little thing, but it felt like
a hug from God that HE hears ME and sees ME.
My best friend and I are holding each other accountable this year for
memorizing scripture. On the 1st
and 15th day of every month, we tackle a new verse or short
passage. I’ve been working on my June 1st
passage a little early since I knew I’d be traveling and busy. It’s 2 Kings 6:16-18.(ESV) “He said, Do not be afraid for those who are
with us are more than those who are with them. Then Elisha prayed and said, “O
LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.
So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw, and behold, the
mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. And when the Syrians came down against him,
Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, Please strike this people with
blindness. So He struck them with
blindness IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PRAYER OF ELISHA.” - As for me… please pray that I will BELIEVE
God.
Thank you for journeying
with us, and for praying FOR us. Please
also pray for Keith and Thayer while we are away. It isn’t easy for a family to be apart.
More when we arrive…
