The church was already worshipping when my friend and I arrived. We were ushered to our seats and even before I began to sing I could tell this was a church that loved the Lord. As this was one of my last opportunities to attend a church inAmericabefore I return toAsia, I didn’t want to take anything for granted. As I sang the final song, talking about the wonderful presence of God, I began to think aboutAsiaand the friends that I have made there. Asia is an area of the world where the right to worship the Lord is severely restricted if not eliminated all together. What would it be like for my Asian believer friends if they could attend a church like this where people could freely declare their love and affection for Christ? What would it be like for my unsaved friends to experience the power of the presence of God in their lives? As tears filled my eyes the Holy Spirit whispered in my ear: “would you give your life, all of your days, so that people inAsiacould feel what you are feeling?”
A lifetime. That question is so much deeper and profound than “would you give a year?, or would you give 5 years?, or would you give your 20s?” Honestly, this is a question I have struggled with this past year. When I think back to graduating college, I never thought I would be living a missionary life inAsia. There are so many dreams and things I want for myself that I constantly have to lay down in order to be where the Lord has called me. But on the other side of surrender, I have found a grace and blessing that goes far and above anything that I could find on my own.
Do I know if I will be inAsiafor the rest of my life? No, not really. But am I willing to make this far-off land home for as long as the Lord would have me? Yes. Even if it’s a lifetime.
McDoogle