ALL THAT WE HAVE

Our daughter Sarah is hoping to go to Peru with a group from our church next summer to work at a missionary and minister in various ways in a small village halfway up the mountains. Melissa and I are in full support. 

We know short term mission trips can be meaningful for team members and useful for the Kingdom. After all, Melissa's mission trip to Haiti in 2010 is where the Lord first started prompting us toward fulltime missionary service.

And as a youth pastor, I even led a number of such trips over the years. And they were worthwhile and largely positive experiences. 

But one thing about short term trips has often bugged me:

Brothers and sisters in Christ will return from a short-term mission trip after spending a week or two among impoverished, needy people and then speak of how the experience stirred up "gratitude for all that we have here at home". 

Don't get me wrong - gratitude in and of itself is good, obviously. So I hope I don't come across too judgy in saying this ...

But gratitude in these cases can sound a little too close to "I'm glad I've got mine - I wouldn't want to live like that". 

Now, what if God was trying to show you that you don't need all of that stuff you're thankful for?

What if He was hoping your reaction would be to sell some of your possessions and give the money to the poor. (There IS precedent!)

Maybe He was hoping for more than gratitude upon your return home. 

Maybe He wanted a bit of "There but for the grace of God go I".