Today's blog was contributed by Rev. Marilyn Dickson
My first mission trip took place 20 years ago. I, along with 18 others, went to Honduras with HOI (Honduras Outreach Institute). We stayed at a ranch that was originally part of a huge estate with workers who sharecropped and worked for small wages. But after the property was nationalized the workers came from villagers who squatted and simply lived on the land. They were some of the poorest of the poor.
We poured concrete slabs for those small homes – 2 small rooms of about 400 square feet that often housed up to 8 people – a communal sleeping area, an open fire for cooking and space for animals. We installed chimneys, dug and built privies and poured concrete floors so parasites that lived in the dirt would not infect the people. I went to help them but in the midst of Vacation Bible School, working hard, learning a few words in Spanish, I was changed.
Watching the kids at VBS, watching our women French braid the young girls hair, watching the guys play soccer with adults and kids all showed me how to re-center my own values. Coming back home I was thankful for running water, hot water showers and a bed off the floor to sleep on. I still am.
I often think back to those days especially now when I am in a store that overflows with choices. That trip helped me rethink my priorities, to ask myself where happiness comes from and to give thanks to God for all I have and the choices I can make. I also had to look at what God asks of me in terms of using what I have and how I develop my gifts and talents for making a difference-for leaving where I live better than when I found it.
Risk taking mission and service to others – stepping outside of our comfort zones – usually starts with wanting to help. But I learned more about what God wants and how God works in our world – through overcoming my personal resistance, some sweat equity, showing up and then being blessed. How does this work for you?
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