There comes a time on the road when you just want to go back home, sleep in your bed and use your own toilet and shower. And yes, I know I am fortunate to have all of that stuff at my house! However, on the road, I do get to thinking about my little house, yet we are still only half way through our mission time. I’m not complaining, mind you, I have a house to go to, many don’t! Besides, there are plenty of people who have 30,000 scriptures to correct me if I am complaining.  

Please don’t mishear me, I love seeing what the Lord does with my 2 little loaves of bread and 5 fishes – but that means that God’s got my lunch! Somebody took it to Jesus and I do hope they remember that I need to eat too! Comfort means a lot to me, so there are times when I have had to pray for stickability, because I’ve just plain run out of go! Prayer is a huge part of the mission field. And boy, am I hoping other people are praying for us! Every member of the Body of Christ has a job to do, and this one is ours. Feel free to join us!

HOWEVER, the bonus bit is this – we get to be court side, centre court, when the Lord does what He wants to do! I love it! But the whole sleeping-in-strange-beds-and-pokey-showers-that-don’t-fit-chubby-old ladies … MEH! Not so much. I’m also not crazy about toilets that practically touch the wall in front of them. I feel like the Lone Ranger trying to climb onto his horse Silver … and I’ve never ridden a horse in my life! That’s the real Lone Ranger above – that other one was just plain weird!

Also those sixty feet high, supposedly-fashionable beds that you need a ladder to climb onto, do not enchant me. I fell off one of those once, and I still have the bruises to prove it.  I’m old OK? I rarely sleep all night. I have to climb up and down onto the very high bed several times … in the dark.

Meanwhile, people are whispering in corners, does she really mean this stuff? YES! Real imperfect people go on the mission field, real people just like you and I. I am not, BTW, grizzling about the Lord, He’s fantastic – but the situation is less than fab in some moments.  Some are probably much better at holding in their complaints than I am. Good for them – praise God for His Grace.

Father God needs all of us to take the Great Commission seriously. And, BTW, whenever He talks to me He doesn’t speak King James English. He is God, He knows how to speak ‘me!’ When the Lord has something for me to say in any given situation, He says: “You’re on!” I think it’s hysterical. It’s just so clear. Jesus spoke LOVE AND COMPASSION – not King James English!

We have to get rid of the idea that any kind of leader, etc. is a special person who knows what they are doing, and that they are better Christians than everyone else. Rhubarb. Please, PLEASE … let’s not forget that until the Holy Spirit came upon them, the disciples were ordinary men and women. Jesus is the special One and He is our example, we follow Him.

Meanwhile, don’t follow me, that first step is a doozie. I’m here to tell you, if I can do this anybody can. The thing about sharing what you know is that you don’t have to memorise a blooming thing when it is part of who you are. You swing your legs outside the boat and the Holy Spirit takes over. “But, but, Peter nearly drowned’ … yeah He did. BUT HE DIDN’T! What happened to Peter is proof that God will not leave us floundering.

I am not a theology teacher, other people much smarter than me can do that. I am just a witness. A witness simply tells you what he has seen. We can all be witnesses – in fact the Lord said that better than I can, and He said it first! (Acts1:8) A witness simply tells the truth. We have found that being real with people is essential. We never rely upon our own love, because, as you’ve probably already noticed, people and circumstances will give you the pip! Instead we rely upon His Love. I know from personal experience, that my love quickly runs out, but His is never-ending. People need the never-ending kind desperately. 

The other thing we all need to remember is that a witness is not the prosecutor, or the judge. Their biggest task is to remember accurately and report clearly. Conversations rarely go the way you think they will, when you are witnessing. That’s because people sometimes get scared or nervous or bored and kind of edge away. That’s a big clue you are losing your audience, time to shut up now. Go back to kindness and leave it alone.

We’ve found that people love gifts, so we leave a bar of chocolate behind us on the bed for the cleaners, to say thank you. We don’t just give away bibles, we give away compasses, bookmarks, keychains, Coles vouchers, whatever God says to give. Just FYI, we buy this stuff ourselves. Hubby shared the gospel with two little Filipino cleaning ladies yesterday, and gave them 3 whole bibles, a bookmark each, and some chocolate. Once we saw a homeless family in dire straits and spent the afternoon helping them to find somewhere to sleep. If you can see a need, then help!

Loving on people is the best way to discover the love of God for them, and also for yourself. But to do it you will have to leave your own agendas with Him, and hold your finances loosely. Then you need to be prepared to listen to someone else’s story. This is not a time for sharing about your life, it is a time for listening to them as they share about theirs. Sometimes, as the Lord leads us, we ask other people if they want us to pray. The secret is to be yourself.

Living this kind of life is never about “them and us.” Instead it’s always about “all of us” together. Do what you can do, and leave the rest to Him. It is most definitely worth it! Bye. 👋