Tuesday, March 29, 2011





This summer my daughter Echo will embark on a mission trip to India. This is no ordinary trip, not a summer camp or retreat, it is to fulfill a desire that God has put in her heart.
Take delight in the LORD,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
You see many years ago a seed was planted in her. In 2002 our family went on a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, it was one of the hardest points in our families history, it was scary, foreign, isolating and faith impacting. Out of that trip came some pretty big spiritual revelations. The first was my husband was called into full time ministry and began to pursue a pastoral job and the second was that Echo knew she wanted to be a missionary. That tiny seed, just the desire to evangelize somewhere (at age 12) was big enough but then God started speaking to Echo and giving her more and more love and compassion for the people in the Middle East and India. Every time something is said about that region or it's people Echo's ears prick up and she listens. When things erupt and there is turmoil, Echo feels it with them. He heart breaks when a bomb explodes, or when hatred is spoken about these people so far away from us. Many well meaning and good Christians have tried to persuade her not to go into this region of the world, saying well meaning and very logical things about safety, security and her youth. This hurts Echo, she begins to wonder if maybe she is wrong and everyone else is right. She told me the other day, "how can it be right for people to die in the middle east, at war or in turmoil and not know who Jesus is?" As a mother it is so hard to minister to her, to comfort her and enable her to see the truth what ever it is. Part of me would like nothing better than to keep her here with me, safe and sound. I know that would be wrong. Who am I to judge her passion, her faith, her calling. Part of being a parent is learning to let go, to have our children find their place in the world. I know that this one trip to India will change Echo, it will give her direction and it might end up taking her even farther away from home. Scary to think about but I would rather have my daughter half way around the world standing with Jesus then lost and wondering around the cities of the United States alone. In the bible there are several things Jesus, God's own son commanded of us.

The first is love God above all else.
The second is to love your neighbor (everyone in the world) as your self.
Mark 12:29-31
29Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God is the only Lord. So love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second most important commandment is this: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

The last was to go out into the world and make disciples of other nations.

Matthew 28:18 18When Jesus came near, he spoke to them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19. So wherever you go, make disciples of all nations: Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 20Teach them to do everything I have commanded you.

“And remember that I am always with you until the end of time.”

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