My first experience with Adventures in Missions was like a gallon of cool water on an excruciatingly hot day. I had finally found what "right" looked like, and I never wanted to leave the oasis.
……………….
I had grown up in the church, raised by many generations of loving Christians. I believed it, but I still didn't know what it was for, beyond an assurance that my final resting place would involve cherubs, and not burning furnaces.
Then came Afghanistan. It felt electric to step onto that plane, because I knew my life would change forever. I knew that the Jen that got on that plane, would not return. She would be different. And that much was certainly true.
God hit me with a 2 x 4 in the middle of the Afghan desert and said, "Follow me." And I said, "Yes."
But I still didn't know what to do with that.
Adventures in Missions did. They took the raw experience of my deployment year, and helped me make sense of it. They made me a co-leader of 19 girls going to Jamaica for a month, and gave me the opportunity to process the experience through action. The leadership showed me what "Follow me" looks like – in practice, in example, and most of all, with a kind of grace and love that rocked my world.
Deep within my soul, I knew that this was right. It was right to share mercy and grace with others in extravagant ways. It was right to meet people and care for people on their level. It was right to be Jesus, and focus less on doing.
All of a sudden, Jesus became a hands-on mentor, instead of a vaguely wise teacher. The stories of the Bible made sense as I saw them lived out in the people around me. And I discovered that the real core of Christianity is this:
When Jesus died for us, it was about freeing us from the suck of our lives today. What happens when we die isn't the point. The point is here and now. And here and now, peoples' lives are sucking.
The truths that Jesus taught, are about liberation and freedom in our time right now. Ultimately this peace continues in heaven – but it starts here and it's available now.
That's the message that we are to carry out into the world. And once this concept hit me, it was like drinking from a fire hose. The burdens, the baggage, the guilt…it all started to peel off. And over time, peace replaced worry and torment.
It's a beautiful story to be told, and it's the story I want shared with others. And that's why I believe in Adventures. They are telling the story, and I want to help.
Was blind, but now I see…
I once was burdened, but now am light,
Was sucky, but now I'm free.
(Jen paraphrase)
