I wrote this on the plane ride back from a week long mission trip in Mexico. I am just now taking the time to type this in. So the date of this post is actually 7/21/08.
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Right now I am on the plane on my way back from Cancun. My journey home is finally coming close to an end as I just completed a five hour layover in Fort Lauderdale. Though I was slightly disappointed to have experienced this travel process alone, I think it was a good thing because I was really able to process and think through what happened over this past week.
For those who know me pretty well, the following statement will come as no surprise. I don’t like change. I know many people would say the same about themselves, but I initially tend to react very negatively toward any type of change in my life. For example, the day before I left for this mission trip, I pretty much had a nervous breakdown. Though I knew that this was something the Lord wanted me to do, I was having a hard time putting that into perspective and I was dreading getting on that plane to Cancun. Though I was having a hard time leaving for this trip, the second I got on that plane all my worries washed away and I was reminded of why I was going to Mexico in the first place. This is how it always seems to go…I get really anxious and worried about something, and then all of those feelings go away once I actually begin what I was dreading to begin.
Just as I fear the onset of any type of change in my life, I also highly dislike when certain things come to a close. The end of a semester, or even the end of a mission trip would be good examples of this. The transition home and back to ‘normal’ life is what really gets to me. With respect to mission trips, in the past I would tend to come off of a trip with some type of spiritual high and then enter some sort of depression when I realized that life was not going to continue on the same way as it was the week prior. The teaching, the worship, the prayer, devotions, the fellowship, serving, and ministry – these are all the aspects of the Christian life compacted into one crazy-busy week of marveling at God’s saving grace and power.
But I have to say, though this is how I have reacted in the past towards ending these types of trips, this transition home was not the same. I realized (and I really wish it wouldn’t have had to take me this long to realize this) that the ministry, prayer, devotions, worship, fellowship, serving, etc., do not have to end with a mission trip. This is the life that God has called us to live as followers of Christ. This is what we do to grow closer to God and become more like Christ. These are the things that don’t come naturally – and on a mission trip it is something that is natural in that context. At home, work, school, etc., these are things that we have to be very intentional with. As members of the body of Christ we need to actively be seeking to worship and pray both individually and corporately. We need to seek fellowship, opportunities to serve, and opportunities to minister and share the gospel with others. It was so exciting for me to realize that these things don’t have to end now that I am home.
Now it’s not that I don’t do these things at home, it’s just that there hasn’t been the same sense of urgency for these things at home as there should be. I have been freshly reminded of this through this trip, and that has allowed for this transition home to be very smooth as I am now patiently anticipating what the Lord is going to do in and through my life next!!
This is getting too long, so I will stop here. More to come…sorry for those of you who have been waiting since December!!
