Why go overseas?

I have had the privilege of spending almost every summer of my adult life on some sort of overseas trip.  In 2003 and 2005, I went to Peru.  In 2006, I went to Greece, where I met my wife!  The recent years have brought me to the Middle East.  Needless to say, I feel pretty honored to have been able to go.

Here’s a couple helpful hints:

1. You’re not bringing God to another country.  You don’t have the trademark on God.  We know this, but we still have this mindset buried in us that we are introducing a country to God.  Often enough, what we do offer is an Americanized God that does more to confuse people than help.  Your mindset should be to recognize how God is working in a given place and help open eyes and be a part of it!

2. With that being said, expect to learn even more than you teach or serve.  Props for making yourself available to the Lord in this way–He definitely will use you–but take a second to look at the opportunity you have.  If God is bigger than America (He is), then you get to see Him in a completely different aspect than you ever have before!  It’s like only getting to know a girl at school and then finding out she works weekends at the homeless shelter and is in a rock band on Thursday nights.  Seeing God work in a different way gives you the chance to know Him…differently.  It adds a depth to the relationship that you just can’t get at home.  Not that home is bad, but now you get –insert cliche– the best of both worlds.

Anyway, check out the opportunities. It’s totally worth it. If nothing else, you get a cool stamp on your passport.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 12:50 pm and is filed under Main. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.