Today my husband, Mickey, along with 10 other members of Greenville Christian Church have embarked on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic. This team will be gone for one week, during which time they will help to build a nutrition center and put on a Vacation Bible School.
The team, led by Denise Manias, varies in age and background. There are those who have participated in missions trips before, and those for which this will be their first step into the waters of missions. The one thing that binds this team together is their desire to be Jesus to those they meet. They all know that the days will be long, it will be hot, and they will get tired. They also go knowing that they might be the only Jesus some of these people ever see. That knowledge is what drives them.
Other than a phone call to the head of our missions committee to let families know they have arrived safely, we won't hear a word from them during the time they are gone. Mickey has been gone for extended periods since we have been married, but we have never gone and entire week without contact. It was made doubly hard for him to leave as I have been sick for a few days, and still continue to run a fever. Then there is the fact that on Thursday, our 4th grand baby will makes its long awaited arrival, and he won't be able to know how that goes. We don't know if this baby is a girl or a boy, and last night he told Rachel that he would be the last to know. The last thing that Mickey said to me this morning as he left was "Take care of all my kids", and in the blink of an eye he had left, and I won't see or hear from him again until next Tuesday.
When God places a call on your life, and you accept that call, sacrifices are made. When Jesus approached a fishing boat and said, "Come with me and I will make you fishers of men" sacrifices were made. Have you ever thought that these men who opted to follow Christ in his ministry for 3 1/2 years most likely had family? That for much of the time, their families didn't hear from them. Didn't know if they were safe? Didn't know if they were ill? Didn't know if they were even alive? And for the men themselves, they had no contact with their families on a regular basis. They missed out on births, weddings, and the deaths of loved ones.
Ministry isn't always easy. Following God's call on your life can take sacrifice, and not just YOUR sacrifice, but the sacrifice of those you love as well. But in the end... it has to be worth it. If just one person... just ONE... comes to a relationship with Jesus Christ, then there is victory.
Be in prayer for this GCC team: Denise, Darryl, Rachel, Adam, Jeff, Ashley, Russ, Blyss, Chris, Joy and Mickey. Today they are beginning a great adventure, and they will need our prayers for safety and strength!
The team, led by Denise Manias, varies in age and background. There are those who have participated in missions trips before, and those for which this will be their first step into the waters of missions. The one thing that binds this team together is their desire to be Jesus to those they meet. They all know that the days will be long, it will be hot, and they will get tired. They also go knowing that they might be the only Jesus some of these people ever see. That knowledge is what drives them.
Other than a phone call to the head of our missions committee to let families know they have arrived safely, we won't hear a word from them during the time they are gone. Mickey has been gone for extended periods since we have been married, but we have never gone and entire week without contact. It was made doubly hard for him to leave as I have been sick for a few days, and still continue to run a fever. Then there is the fact that on Thursday, our 4th grand baby will makes its long awaited arrival, and he won't be able to know how that goes. We don't know if this baby is a girl or a boy, and last night he told Rachel that he would be the last to know. The last thing that Mickey said to me this morning as he left was "Take care of all my kids", and in the blink of an eye he had left, and I won't see or hear from him again until next Tuesday.
When God places a call on your life, and you accept that call, sacrifices are made. When Jesus approached a fishing boat and said, "Come with me and I will make you fishers of men" sacrifices were made. Have you ever thought that these men who opted to follow Christ in his ministry for 3 1/2 years most likely had family? That for much of the time, their families didn't hear from them. Didn't know if they were safe? Didn't know if they were ill? Didn't know if they were even alive? And for the men themselves, they had no contact with their families on a regular basis. They missed out on births, weddings, and the deaths of loved ones.
Ministry isn't always easy. Following God's call on your life can take sacrifice, and not just YOUR sacrifice, but the sacrifice of those you love as well. But in the end... it has to be worth it. If just one person... just ONE... comes to a relationship with Jesus Christ, then there is victory.
Be in prayer for this GCC team: Denise, Darryl, Rachel, Adam, Jeff, Ashley, Russ, Blyss, Chris, Joy and Mickey. Today they are beginning a great adventure, and they will need our prayers for safety and strength!
1 comment:
I'm so excited to hear about the journey this mission team has started on this morning! Thank God for people who have the hearts to do the mission trips!
And thinking of the apostles being gone - its crazy to think about - especially in our world of technology where we can get ahold of people across the country with no thought! They had NO contact at all with loved ones! WOW - to leave it all behind to follow Jesus! What an example!
Post a Comment