I twisted Neil Armstrong’s famous words as he became
the first human to step on the moon to reflect my feelings as I prepare to
take my first mission trip in a few days. Yes, in just 3 days I’m heading to Jalapa,
Guatemala with a group from my home church. I thought if I wrote about what
brought me to this point, maybe it would help others take the leap, get outside
their comfort zones and proclaim their faith to others, while at the same time learning how different people live and view the world.
After a few church-less years in my twenties and
early thirties, I was moved (I believe my mom’s ceaseless prayers were
answered) to find a church home and raise my 2 young boys in a positive, Christian
environment. I found a great church close to home, connected with the pastor
and became a member of Effort Baptist Church in Fluvanna County. Right away, my
wife became very active, signing up for small groups and taking Bible classes.
I kind of eased into things but soon became as involved as her. As my boys got
older my wife began to go on mission trips with them. They picked up trash
locally, built access ramps and repaired roofs in North Carolina and even
repaired homes after Hurricane Katrina. In the past few years she has gone to Puerto
Rico and Guatemala always returning with great stories about what God was doing
through the mission groups. I watched all of this and thought it sounded great,
I even told myself I need to go on a mission trip.
Every year, in February or so, our church would
post the list of places where they would be sending mission teams. And each
year I would read the list, pray over it and nothing. Yes God had a plan for me
and wanted me to step out, but the time wasn’t right. I mean if I was really
called to serve I would feel the spirt leading me, right? Well I started
attending Effort in the fall of 1995 and still no mission trip. This year was
different though. The list was posted as usual, I looked it over and said that’s
it, I’m going and put my finger on Guatemala. Funny thing is, once I made the
decision I actually felt moved to go and the apprehension of stepping outside
my comfort zone began to fade away and I am filled with excitement, eager to share
my faith, work with others, and learn about another culture. I will be taking a
notebook and I intend to post about my experience when I return.
