“My soul finds rest in God alone; my
salvation comes from Him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my
fortress, I will never be shaken. “ Psalm 62: 1-2
I love the
stability and unchanging character of our God. Everything around us can shift
and there He is, a Rock that remains unmoved and unshaken. Even as I write this
sentence I can see and hear the rain beat down on the Colorado Mountains from
my window. Lightening is crashing and a fierce wind is blowing that makes the
windows on this lodge shudder. Unsurprisingly, the mountain’s position remains
the same.
I’ve been
thinking about having peace in the midst of change quite a bit the past week. On
a small scale, it still amazes me that because of air travel I can be on the
beach one evening and then in the mountains the next afternoon. On a larger
scale, I’m currently immersed in a training program where the whole focus is to
prepare you to leave all familiarity to serve Jesus Christ in a foreign
country.
Most of my waking
hours lately have been spent taking classes and ‘doing life’ with 45
missionaries and their 37 young children. Each one of the families or singles
here has been called by God to enter new cultures and contexts; all for the
purpose of proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord. The places and ways they’ll serve
will be different (pastor, church-planter, doctor, dentist, veterinarian,
pilot) but each one is hungry to introduce people to an unchanging, trustworthy
God.
Maybe you’re
like me and you’ve thought at some point “But missionaries are
‘super-Christians!’ They are absolutely
fearless! That’s why God chose them.” When
we look at Scripture, it’s obvious God didn’t choose anyone to serve Him on the basis of their fearlessness
(look at Gideon and Moses). What I see is that He looks instead at humility and
a willingness to go (Isaiah 6:8). Where
He sends us will look different for each one of us, but I know it will always
be outside our comfort zone. Faith always does that.
For these
men and women called to overseas missions, uncertainty about their future causes
them to struggle with normal human fears. So what do they do with their “humanness”? They’re
actively giving their fears of the unknown to the Lord and moving forward,
fixed on His face. They’re not being
paralyzed by fear; instead they’re in the process of having it stripped off of
them as they run forward in obedience and faith. As a result, I’m convinced we’ll
gain new family members from Bosnia, China, Japan, Cambodia, India, Vietnam,
Tunisia, Lesotho, Sierra Leon, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Senegal, Burundi,
Myanmar, Mexico, Chad and the Czech Republic.
Spending
time with some of the missionary children has given me a picture of what my faith
and trust should look like. Every one of
them that I’ve talked to has been content to step out as long as Dad and Mom
seem to think it’s a good idea. They very simply trust that their parents will
be with them and take care of them, so it doesn’t really matter to them what
their lives will look like. They have confidence to follow dad to the dinner
table, the playground, or to Senegal. The context doesn’t matter to them
because they have a relationship that
serves as their constant.
I’m learning
to love how the Lord only gives us the details we need, when we need it. Again,
the He has used the children to teach me. I’ve been observing this week how
they’re being taught and prepared in their classes and by their parents on how
to fit into their new assignment. For instance, I was eating dinner last night
with a young family that is preparing to go to India. The little toddler son
was asked by his dad “now what hand do we eat with?” and the little boy proudly
shot up his right hand, left hand on his lap. His little eyes shone as his dad
praised “Good job, buddy!” The father was giving him preparation for the Indian
culture, but just what the little guy could handle. He didn’t explain the Caste
system, give him a book on Hindi, or discuss polytheism with his four-year old
son. He will keep giving him what he needs to know, when he’s able to handle
it. That son’s responsibility is really just to obey and follow his dad, and
enjoy doing that. Dad will take care of the rest of the details. Maybe we’re tempted to say, “Yeah, but that’s
for children. We’re really responsible for a lot more than that. Grown-ups
don’t get to just follow along like that.” It sounds too simple to me too.
“So Jesus explained, ‘I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by
Himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing.
Whatever the Father does,
the Son also does.” John 5:19
“For I do not speak of
my own accord, but the Father who sent Me commanded Me what to say and how to
say it.” John 12:49
“The One who sent Me is with Me; He has not
left Me alone, for I always do what pleases Him.” John 8:29
“And my God will meet
all your needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19
Too simple for my pride, more than enough to go on in faith.
Lord, help us to be like little children, looking to You
alone as our constant. Make us content to serve You wherever our feet are
planted on this earth. Plant them in the Rock of who You are and give us
courage to follow You.
“Faith never knows
where it is being led, but loves and knows the One who is leading.” –Oswald
Chambers.
