Caught in the CrossFire

“It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it honourable to seek one’s own honour…” - Proverbs Ch 25 v27

I think I’m going to be embarking on a huge journey this summer. It’s pretty early days but I attended a meeting about Mission Teams that go out to different countries every summer to help different communities with activities like church planting and building etc. I’ve talked myself out of doing this EVERY year but I wasn’t kidding when I said God changed my life and heart at the end of last summer – and now, it’s time to start sharing it. Everything’s moved so quickly – I decided to go to the meeting pretty last minute and my parents have been REALLY supportive. When I told my mum I was considering doing it, her face erupted into a huge grin and she said “Don’t worry about money Debs – I’m so glad you’re finally doing this!” – And so am I. For the first time, I feel capable. I feel strong and ready show God my willingness to learn and endeavour for him.  The verse above is something I’ll be referring to a lot throughout this process that may or may not unravel.  I have to realise the importance of doing these things for God’s honour – NOT to feel great about myself and my own efforts.

I have a few friends interested in going away too and a few of us feel drawn to the same place - Moldova. We’ve been praying a lot over the last few days and I still feel positive that this is the place Gods going to allow me to experience. There’s little factors that are making me sure of this. It’s not just the feeling I have about it but its how things have been working out. Firstly, I approached the team meeting with a few countries in my mind, certain that it would be a simple choice between the likes of Poland or Romania – pretty well known places. I know girls who have done mission trips to these countries and I suppose a sense of familiarity made me a little more enthused to consider them.

 How I ended up feeling drawn to a country, whose name I could barely pronounce at first, is quite honestly beyond me! I know little of the country’s history and politics but it’s what we’ll be doing in these communities that inspire me. From what I’ve gathered so far, we’ll be involved in giving testimonies and helping church communities to be established. There’s some work with kids and teens involved too. But what really struck me was the way in which this mission helps Christians like me to grow. It encourages us to express ourselves in every way imaginable to overcome language barriers and cultural differences. We can’t rely on words alone. God’s love has to shine through our actions, our body language and our efforts to connect with everyone we meet – even if they can’t speak a single word of English. This appeals for way too many reasons to count!

The main one is that I know I have a voice that could potentially reach a lot of people. I’m not scared to talk with honesty and passion and to be blatantly upfront about my flaws. I’m hoping and praying that this mission team helps me to express this voice in a way that can be received and understood by  Gods children because even back when I was immature in my faith, my ability to relate to others was the only thing I thought I had going for me. I’m lacking some confidence in this area because I’ve never taken the chance to develop it. What I am confident off, is that God has a long list of things to teach me and if I don’t take the plunge now, I’ll always hide away in my reluctance, scared to try new things and go out on the limb for God.

I’ve still to do a lot of research and officially apply but I feel called to express all that Gods done and been doing in me these last 6 months. All glory goes to him!