I Miss Colombia

Saturday night my parents were down for the evening so that they could come along to church in Zurich for our commissioning service and sending of the new church. It meant a lot to me that they made the trip to support us, even though my dad had to work later in the day Sunday. Saturday night I showed them the DVD Joel had created using video clips and pictures from my Colombia trip almost a year ago. I can't believe it was only a year since I was there, and in other ways it seems like yesterday.

The DVD made me miss Colombia...a lot. I wish that everyone would have the opportunity to travel to a country where people don't have as much materially as in North America. It was such an amazing experience to see how many other people in the world live. Bogota and especially Medellin were absolutely breathtaking. There is something about the majesty of a mountain that just makes me realize how incredible our God really is. This is a good thing for me to remember as Joel and I embark on a new adventure in our lives. We are going to be hosting a church plant from what used to be our home church: Zurich Mennonite. I'll admit, my emotions shift from excited to afraid almost daily. As the control freak, with a bunch of unknowns ahead of me, I am walking out in faith. Sometimes my faith gets buried with worries. It's good for me to remember being in Colombia. That trip was also a huge leap for me. Travelling to another country, a dangerous one at that, without my family was a real stretch for me. It was an awesome growing experience. I'm sure that this new church is going to stretch my faith in many ways as well.

I've always been so blown away by people who take their families and move to another country to share the love of Christ with others. Trevor and Sherry Main, have been raising their two children in South America for years. Incredible. Imagine not being able to see your parents hardly at all, or your kids not being able to see their Grandparents. They gave up the comforts of home, the luxuries of their North American life and they left...to share the message with people who needed to hear it.
It was such an honour to spend time with this incredible family. The love they have for the people of Colombia is so evident! They are also very well respected among the people there because of the love of Christ that shines through them all.

So, we believe God has asked us to leave our comfort zone of Zurich Mennonite. I know, it's hardly a comparison at all, we are not making near the sacrifice that many others (like the Main family do), and yet, we are missionaries of sorts. It's hard to say goodbye. There will be sacrifices. Our kids won't see their Grandparents as often (whereas they used to see them every Sunday at church). I know we won't be an 8 hour flight away, but it's still going to be different. There will probably be lots of friends from Zurich that I will rarely see. I am excited though, because I know that God has led us into this adventure, and He's not about to strand us now. So I need to have faith. That all the details will be worked out, that I'll be able to handle hosting a houseful of people every Sunday, that God will use this home to spread His message to others here in Clinton.

We're ready Lord.

Mel