"Those are the things I remember, the things instilled in my life, that you've got to follow God where ever he is drawing you to go, even if the people you care about don't understand what you are doing. And I think that is a hard lesson. I think a lot of people have been so schooled into wanting peoples approval, that it is very hard to be obedient to God when the people you care about can't affirm what you are doing. And yet, where else do you go? What else do you do except follow the Lord, and trust the Lord with the consequences of what that is....." (Wayne Jacobsen in a conversation with his 90 yr old dad on a podcast Nov, 2012)
Being the first, and only people working among an all Islamic people in North Africa, this resonated. Fortunately, none of my family, and few of my friends (not many), have ever actively discouraged me personally. But almost everyone around me wants to hear very little about "over there". People don't actively discourage us, but they do oh so little to actively encourage us either. What to be the best fried you can be to a person who lives and works internationally? Just let them talk, and listen, listen, and listen. They have to get the stories out for time to time or they will pop, trust me. The story has to be told from time to time. And if you ask questions, and listen, you will be offering a healing favor to them
"Is it safe to go?", is the most common question, and it's the most annoying too. Yes,,50% of the country was taken over by Al Qaeda and a Jehad called Anser Dine. Is it "Risless"? No, it never is, but why run away when those affected most need you more than ever.... all in the demand for perfect and complete safety. But out region is "relatively" secure.
Anyway, most people can't fathom doing such a "risky" thing, so avoid the subject all together. We are deafened by their silence about the whole thing. But I'm OK with that. I've moved past that maybe 10 yrs ago.
The quote, also resonated about my spiritual journey, my "ministry"' in Canada too. Stepping out of traditional paid ministry, the customary way of doing church. Turning from managing the heavy attractional programing/special event model of church, refusing to get bogged down in local church management as a CEO, and avoiding a structure that makes the Sunday event (and a few other time slots) the main thing that needlessly consumes most of our resources (Both time and money) to maintain while burning out those who sustain it, and grows them little in return, and that reduces members to mere spectators and "volunteers" seen as recruits to fill the predefined slots in the "vision" of we "Leader(s)", in exactly the way we envision it. (INHALE)
Yes, few of the people living that dream can affirm what I am doing here in Canada either. How can church and kingdom work be so simple, so economical, and so easily repeated by ordinary people? (I'll not even mention....so NOT burdensome....oops, that slipped out). Is this for real? For most, the church is only what we do, and how we do it, there in that building on Sunday. They simply can't fathom any other viable manifestation of the body. They have known, nor seen anything else.
Yes it's hard, and lonely, to obey God when others can't affirm the journey.
So, yes, this conversation really resonated.
AJ
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