“I’ve asked the question time and time again, ‘God if you truly cared about these people, why did you make it so hard to reach them?'”As I look ahead at the difficulties of life on the field, I’d be lying if I told you that I am not afraid. I would be lying if I told you that at times, other ministries haven’t sounded “more comfortable”. When you actually stop and think about the dangers, frustrations, stress, time, energy spent, the millions of unanswered questions, and unknowns, it’s hard not to want to run and hide. My father-in-law who served in Paraguay for 12 years once told me this, “It’s got to come down to a serious love for the Lord and a day by day decision to walk with Him. It’s the only thing that will keep you there.” The more that I’ve pondered those words, the more I’ve come to realize that he’s right. I have not even begun to taste life on the field. Yet I realize that the choices I make now, are what will ultimately determine how I live when I’m there. My day to day decisions, now, impact what I will be like when I’m there. I am constantly feeling the weight of this and it’s good motivation for me! These are the questions that I have been asking myself recently: What do I find myself continually focused on? What do I find my heart consistently running to for comfort and peace? How do I view the lost around me here in my own home town? You know, I used to think that I was the only one who had these sort of “big” questions lingering in my mind. As if I were somehow alone in this type of thinking. Well, throughout the last year and a half, God has shown me numerous times that I’m not alone at all. He has shown us all throughout history and through His Word that He is faithful and intimately involved in our day to day lives. And as if that’s not enough He has even gone so far as to bring people into our lives who have asked very similar questions. So back to the question at the top of this post. Would you believe me if I told you that those words didn’t come from me, a “rookie”? Instead they came from a well seasoned missionary, someone who has been there and done it. In fact, someone who has served for many years on the field as a consultant, teacher, and church planter. I sat and listened to him intently, hanging on every word, he welled up with tears as he said this, “I’ve asked the question time and time again, ‘God if you truly cared about these people, why did you make it so hard to reach them?’ And then He begins to show me to what great lengths He went to in order to reach me. You guys, it’s a love for the Lord and for the lost around us. When we begin to see people through His eyes it changes everything. We should be begging come into contact with people who haven’t heard. It’s not missions you guys. It’s God’s love for the world.”