What To Expect

The excitement for this trip has been building and building inside of me.

It's fascinating, all of the different realities, countering dreams, countering realities, etc... that wash over me at any possible time of the day or night. And still it's the excitement and purpose that permeate every step of it.

Do I think I'm going to change the world? A continent? In 3 months? How about 6 months?

No.

But I believe I'm going to change somebody's world.

And this world (the whole thing) is better when we give anything (no matter how small) for the purpose of making someone's life better.

The past couple of times I've been to a fast food restaurant there have been homeless people sitting out front. So I bought some food and dropped it off with them as I was leaving. The first time I did this, when I climbed into my car, I cried.

It was a ridiculous 2-second cry. Really, it just stopped me. And it wasn't out of pride, or joy, or even sorrow for the person, it was because it hit me how rarely I've done that. It was the simplest thing on the planet to do, even with a struggling bank account and running a little late for work, it was so easy. And yet, how often does it happen? Well, it's happened since, and it will happen again.

I find myself struggling with pride over it, as though I've done something great. But anytime that starts to come up reality hits pretty hard, pretty fast... No, something great would be empowering him so that he never has to wait for someone to drop off a few burgers on their way out the door. What am I saying? I'm not sure.

But, do you know what changed? In these instances? I would like to think the people I helped are different because of it... but I know who really changed...

I did.

So I'm going to Africa. To my western mind it's synonymous with adventure, wildlife, danger, suffering, hunger, need.... even missions (I called my old youth pastor and told him I was becoming a cliche: An Africa Missionary (...he hasn't called back)).

And what do I know I can count on? Can I count on an entire continent changing because of me? A continent that since 1955 has had more than 1.3 trillion dollars of foreign aid (yes, I said trillion that's twelve zeros... a million million) poured into it in the hopes of ending it's poverty (we can go into the politics of that another time, or not... but the real changes are made by the people there, not by the money, at least not the way it's been handled in the past). Can I count on headlines across the world reading, "Shad Changes the Face of Africa!"

Am I so vain? So patronizing?

I hope not, but I'm sure, that in giving what I have to give, and in changing what I can change, that probably the biggest change, will happen in me. So it would probably be far more accurate (though just as unlikely) for a headline to read, "Africa Changes the Face of Shad."

I know I've already been changed just in preparing for it. And really, it isn't about me and it isn't about Africa. It's about love. Love for God. Love for people. God's love for people.

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Our generation is going to go deeper and further with God than any other people ever have, in the history of this planet.

Dealing with Good

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Compassion is the correct response.

When we see people hurting or hungry; lonely or cold; widowed or orphaned; sick... or just broken down on the side of the road...
it is a good thing that we feel sympathy as we witness them. That is a good quality within us.

I think sometimes we have negative associations with these experiences because we relate them to guilt or shame... maybe because we don't feel we do enough to be a real help... or we don't even know what would really help.

But when we recognize that this compassion is a good thing, the right thing to be feeling... then we are in the perfect place to be a benefit to those around us. Then we can respond to the needs of those we come into contact with whatever we are able to offer. Not out of guilt or shame... but out of ... an almost subconscious understanding that the good in us, is worth sharing with others.

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The good in us.

The more I've observed the more I'm convinced that people are good. I've always thought that a "victim mentality" is the greatest bane to humanity... this idea that it is the world around us what is to blame for our shortcomings.

But, although I still believe it is a great bane, I've also realized that it is the greatest proof of the inherent goodness in mankind... or maybe it would be more accurate to say the inherent desire to be good (though I find the two difficult to separate).

Why would someone who had no desire to be good, care about the perception of why they do evil things? They wouldn't.

They care about that perception, out of a hope that though they have done evil things... they are not evil. If it is the fault of my parents, or school, or society, or circumstance that I steal, or cause pain, or lie... then maybe if those things change, I will no longer be one who steals, or lies.

Yes, it's wrong. Yes, we cannot grow out of our vices until we take responsibility for them...
but... isn't the hope itself such a beautiful thing to recognize?

That we want to do good?

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With this in mind, now we can look at the Children of Israel, in the Old Testament and hear them crying out to God.

"We are sinners. We worship other things. We kill. We steal. We lie. We are adulterous. We are sinners! We recognize it and are unable to change. Is there any hope?"

And God hears their cry. And gives them hope.

He makes them a promise and carved it into stone:

Don't worry,
You will have no other Gods before me. You will not murder. You will not commit adultery. You will not steal. You will not lie. You will not covet what is your neighbor's...

He gives them hope. Makes a promise? A prophesy? Could the law be a definition of what His plan for His children is... instead of a burden?

In Matthew 5:17 Jesus said, "I haven't come to destroy the law, but to fulfil it."

And He did didn't He?

Because of His sacrifice, God's promise that we would not be murderers, thieves, and liars... is true. Because the sacrifice was so perfect, and the forgiveness was so complete, we match the description God gave us in the Law.

2 Corinthians 3:6 says that the letter of the law destroys, but the spirit of the law gives life.

What if instead of putting all of our energy into just trying to obey the law... we choose to believe it?



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Sharon is blogging. It's wonderful.


I've been fumbling with writing my support letter, but I think it's really close.

So, um... would you mind sending your mailing address to:

shadsharonmission[at symbol]gmail.com

You will receive a FREE stamped envelope! (this would be a good place for a winking emoticon... but I'm way too cool and manly to use emoticons)
Thanks.

Answers Without Questions

So, this season in my life has been... different.

I've always been able to pursue God about specific things and get relatively clear answers. Whether it be a simple peace to act in this way, or an excitement to go that way, or a definite confidence in what needs to be done.

But the past several months, maybe close to a year, every time I've pursued Him for answers, I've found Him... but... not what I would have called my answers. I couldn't go before Him in prayer and/or in the Bible without finding amazing truths about His character and love... yet none of it seemed to pertain to my various struggles (i.e. whether or not to move to CO, to take this job or that, to go to Africa). Don't get me wrong I think our free will is absolutely the most beautiful and powerful gift God gave us, and I think His design is for us to make decisions for ourselves.

But the Bible also says that He hears our cry and saves us. I think there is a lot of guidance available to make the best decisions and to then get the most out of those decisions.

So here I am... thinking I'm bringing a specific petition before Him, and as I enter His presence I found out that... Adam was one tough dude and a hopeless romantic.

Eh?

Yep. God shows me part of His passion and love for mankind is our tenacity and optimism.

Have you ever thought about how Christians who have tasted even the smallest part of God's essence, are willing to sacrifice their entire lives in pursuit of more of Him? And if anything were to separate them from Him... they are pretty sure they'd just lie down and die? It's a common attitude we have.

But... have a look at Adam and Eve. They had "the perfect" relationship with God: constant communion with Him, physical interaction with Him, clothed in His very glory. Pretty much everything we would pursue and might dream of having with Him...

... and it was ripped out from under them. They had it and completely lost it.

You know, we're barely 3 chapters into the Bible here (what's that, like day ten-ish?), not a bad place to just scratch the whole creation thing/experiment, maybe start over.

But God didn't, He let us live.

And Adam and Eve could have given up and just curled up and died there.

But they didn't. They lived.

Now here's the part I love: When all this dirt is out in the open and God's obviously sad and angry and He's making very clear what all of the curses are that go along with a life submitted to sin... Adam has the most fascinating reaction to it all:

God says first to the serpent, "Because you did this you are cursed more than any other animal. You will crawl on your belly, and man will step on you... and you will bruise man's heal. (I've always thought that was a humorous illustration)

And then God says to woman, "Your pain will increase during pregnancy and in pain you will give birth, and you will struggle for power with your husband."

And to man he said, "The ground is now cursed, you will struggle all your life to get a living from it. It will grow thorns and thistles for you... by the sweat of your brow will you have food to eat until you return to the ground from which you were made..."

And how does Adam react to all of this? Remember, death and pain were completely unknown to them before all of this. This is a huge awful thing to swallow, not only is God mad, you just found out life is going to be really hard and painful, and you're just going to die at the end of it, and you don't really have a relationship with God anymore...

But what does Adam do in the very next verse?

"Then Adam turned to his wife and named her Eve, because she would be the mother of all who live." Gen 3:20

What?!

Didn't he hear a word God said? I picture Eve taking this all pretty hard and feeling responsible and ashamed. She's sitting there with her face buried in her hands, weeping. And Adam lifts her chin up, takes her hands in his and says, "Did you hear that? ...We're gonna have kids!"

Hopeless romantic.

And as long as mankind could survive long enough for God to make a way to redeem us... we would be saved.

Tenacious.

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So, how do I apply any of that to the things I'm trying to figure out? Beats me (guess I'll just have to rest in Matt 6:33).

But I do know that God is one fascinating, fantastic... God. Gotta love Him.