Reflections on our Vision Team Mission trip to the Logos Hope

Reflections on our Vision Team Mission trip to the Logos Hope

While sorting through my photos and trying to organize my thoughts, I have been reminded of numerous specific events and several overall perspectives that remain as fond memories. Everything from the initial commitment and preparations to the return and wind down has brought with it a flood of emotions and excitement about what God is doing now and what He will do next.

Well, “they” say that a picture is worth 1,000 words… I have over 1,000 pictures which should translate to a million words… minimum!... and that’s just the beginning. Those of you who have had to endure my ramblings know that I have a difficult time “making a long story short” and have gotten more than you bargained for since I’ve gotten home from our trip. I’ll try to condense my current thoughts into a word picture that hopefully will be an accurate analogy of what we experienced on our trip. By doing so, I hope to paint the picture that will give you the gist of our experiences and will definitely have at least 1,000 words behind it.

My word picture for today would have you consider the enthusiasm and energy that you would typically experience on a college campus or in a college town. It can be energizing and exciting to be around young adults with great hope for the future and a fresh outlook on life… That’s what we experienced on the Logos Hope. But it gets even better.

The intensity of college-type enthusiasm is typically magnified when the course of study is common within a group. For example a group of Medical Students or Music Students will have a much more focused and intense camaraderie within their group as well as a greater impact outside of their group. That’s what we experienced on the Logos Hope.

Without fail we heard from these young adults and all of the crew that God had shown His providence and direction in bringing them to the ship. We heard over and over that they were open to God’s leading every day through their experiences and beyond their term on the ship. Wow! What an encouraging and refreshing perspective on how we should all live our lives and finish well! That’s what we experienced on the Logos Hope.

The analogy of college life breaks down slightly when considering the “dark” side of the college experience, which we are accustomed to hearing about. This “dark” side typically involves aberrant behavior, which the culture of this world excuses as “adolescence” or a “rite of passage”. Baloney! It’s nothing more than sin. On the ship, however, because of the singular focus on Godliness, growth, and ministry, this dark side either doesn’t exist or is very minimal.

Finally, all of the statements that you have probably heard from other members of mission teams apply: You had to be there. I’ll never be the same. God has shown me new perspectives of His character and His power.

So what does this all mean? Most of all I hope to encourage YOU to go! You’ll never be the same. God will show Himself mighty and powerful to you in unexpected ways. He will build your faith, hope, and love.

The opportunity to go and serve is right where you are. Don’t go looking for it anywhere else. Look for it right where you are. Seize it! Take a step of faith to move forward. Trust God to show you your next step(s).

We all learned to walk with baby steps. Our walk by faith should be similar: Baby steps lead to wobbly steps... lead to walking on solid ground… lead to walking through rocky or risky ground… all beginning with baby steps. Are you willing to trust God with your first baby steps? I pray that you are and that you will be introduced into the incredible world of God’s ministry through your life.

The choice is yours. If you’d like to get a deeper perspective on God’s calling for your life and your opportunities to finish well, I would strongly encourage you to read and reflect on the truths and principles presented by John Piper in his book, “Don’t Waste Your Life”.

With the love of Christ and for the glory of God,

Lee

p.s. OOPs! AARGH! The word count is 752. As expected, I couldn’t make this “long story” short. That’s what I get for setting expectations… but that’s another commentary for another day…