A Rollercoaster Ride?

This is the process I go through when I see a roller coaster….
I don’t wait in line, I go over by the fence and just watch the people getting on,
Some seem really excited , others a little reserved, and others a little fearful…
But, they continue and put their seat belt on and the attendant comes by and makes sure everyone is buckled in safely so that they can’t fall out….and the ride starts!
At first everyone seems to be handling the ride fine as it mounds up the first slope, but then it rushes head long straight down…you hear screaming and see very fear filled faces. The ride for a moment doesn’t seem very safe or like a lot of fun…but, they get over that and prepare for the next twist in the ride…and on it goes until only minutes later it is FINISHED!
They sigh a sigh of relief and off they go, telling everyone what fun the ride was!

This is what it is like for me going on the mission field.
First you watch and listen to the experiences of others and God starts to put a desire in your heart to go as well. You start reading the Word and come across stories like Abraham who was willing to leave his country and give up everything to follow God
Paul who had his eyes opened to the truth became passionate for sharing that Good News with as many people as he could
And many others who through the ages found a passion for the Gospel that they just had to go….for some that go meant in their very neighborhood but for others it meant a go that took them to distant lands and cultures….

Back to the roller coaster….before you get on you watch others and you count the cost of the ride! You see that it will not always be easy….sometimes the slopes will be high…..like having to learn a new language…living with a family that can’t speak a word of English……having no car, no house, no phone……and needing to fit into a culture who think very differently than your own…. All this brings you at a decision point….will I cross that ticket line and get on or will I stay here on the sideline and just watch others enjoy the ride?
I have discovered that when I am truly serving God out of the gifts and call He has on my life it is very much like that roller coaster ride…there may be bumps along the way but the thrill of being in the center of His will is irreplaceable!

What’s the pull? It is sort of like a man who finds a pearl of great price and sells all he has to obtain it…
Because that pearl is far more precious to him that all the treasures in this world!

I used to think that it took very talented people, like Jan and John to become missionaries. So, when I read the slogan of the agency we choose I was excited! It says: Helping Ordinary people partner with God to accomplish the extraordinary!
That works for Me! I know that I am an ordinary person! In fact God usually chooses ordinary people to do His work so that He gets the glory!!!