And the final leg begins! I think I can speak for most when I say that January Training was very much needed. Especially because I for one needed some transition period coming back from the warm Australian temperatures, the busy Sydney routine, the heavy influences of secular culture and a dose of what life would be like outside the crazy, fulfilling and defining NET lifestyle and to refocus on ministry.
Our supervisor Sarah Masters, delivered an amazing and inspiring talk on relational ministry during training and she delivered it with so much conviction that by the end of it we were all on fire to be so freaking relational to everyone; as in ev-er-y-one! The talk definitely reminded me of how we only have now to ‘move’ people toward Christ and with the now poses the question, “What are you going to do about it”?
Are you going to put your fears aside to chat to the cool kid at school and be fearless when speaking about Christ? Are you going to love your team and keep them accountable through Crucial Conversations? Are you going to sacrifice your sleep to stay up and chat, play and love host families? Are you going to be persistent in loving the student who only ever gives you one word responses? Are you going to be open to new experiences? How much are you ready to sacrifice to keep this mission alive and bring Christ in the center of everything? The teams only have 5 months to be as open as ever to the Holy Spirit and have Him do His work through our unworthy hands to somehow reach the people He wants us to reach. 5 months!! I do feel the pressure - I want to be so intentional and invested in the community and my team that by the end of it, I want my heart to literally break with having to leave.
Abandonment and faith have definitely come up in prayer which was no surprise after that talk. NET Missionaries commit a period of their life to do something bigger than themselves and the truth is, in that time, life at home continues to move forward without us. We are called to ‘surrender’ from the get go: surrender our struggles of not being within the comfort of home, of not building on careers, of putting a hold on studies, of being without family. Because to do our Father's will completely and wholeheartedly calls for us to surrender anything and everything that may be holding us back from being completely present in the here and the now. His will begs us to refocus our attention on Him everyday, to surrender everything we have, want, dream, desire and take a firm grip on this beautiful thing we call faith! So wherever you are, surrender and be ALL there!
God bless,
Joy
- iNFUSE 1, Swift Current SK
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