Well ladies and gentlemen, tonight was my last night as intern for White Station.
I can't tell you how many times I've tried to start this post but have ended up too blurry eyed to finish it.
To say that this summer was amazing is quite an understatement. I have seen the face, hands and feet of Christ through this entire experience and I wish I could truly convey what God has done in my heart. Unfortunately, words fail me once again.
Before I came to Memphis I starting to loose hope in "Christianity". I wondered if anyone had actually read the gospel to fully understand what Christ was calling us to be. Radical. Passionate. Joyful. Risky. Dangerous. Exciting. Alive. I felt like "the church" was in a deep self induced coma and didn't even realize it. I begged God to show me that the diagnosis wasn't accurate - that there was something more, something alive, something real. A real Christianity.
I was frustrated and exhausted but more than any of that I was overwhelmed with sadness. I craved to see uninhibited joy in my Christian family but saw the barriers that kept us locked in fear. Satan began to sow a lie in my heart that the fight we were fighting was useless. He whispered that people had messed up "Christianity" so much we'd lost the gospel that countless others had died to save. I prayed for God to show me that Satan was wrong.
Our God is a good God.
He did just that. He showed me passion, sacrifice, humanity, laughter, service, humility, and love through normal every day people who just happened to be in the family of the WhiteStationCoC. I couldn't get over it. I came here and I felt LOVE manifest itself not out of duty but out of a desire from blessings they had received from their Father. I saw it in the teens, in their parents, in the elders, their pulpit minister, secretary, even the janitor. I saw it in Ghana as well as downtown Memphis.
It is so hard to leave a good thing once you find it. God has taught me so much through this church family that the two words "thank you" seem inadequate. My heart is heavy to leave my new family but at the exact same time I know what lies ahead.
God has big things in store for Auburn. I mean, we're talking BIG. One of the things that Duncan said at camp was "Don't suffer from small God syndrome". I want you to know that the power and grace and love of God isn't small. It isn't just in Ghana. It isn't just in Memphis.
It's in Auburn and I plan to join Him on His mission there. What that looks like I have absolutely no idea but I do know that I'm ready and excited to get started.
I can't wait to see each of you. I will be back in Auburn in the afternoon on Tuesday. I want to hear your stories and what God has done for you and with you this summer.
As always, thanks for stopping by. *
* If you were curious, this blog will continue to be up regardless of my residence. I want my Memphis peeps to know how things are going in Auburn so have no fear - more updates will be here!
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1 comment:
Every time I hear one of my friends, or friends of friends, or anyone for that matter speak about a mission trip they went on, there are lots of striking similarities.
One such similarity is that they always feel as if the people of the region touched them more than they touched those people. Even though I've not done mission work of that level ever, I am more than willing to believe what my friends have been saying.
Megan, what you wrote about many Christians in the US being in somewhat of a "coma" about their faith is true. I'm guilty of it myself often times. We get too comfortable it seems. I see it in myself and I see it in society; our morals start slipping, and we slowly become more willing to allow certain things and obsessively fear offending others by living out our beliefs. We could all learn much by looking to those who are in need in such places like Ghana or Memphis, because many times these people learn that faith is something you can't live without, no matter whether you have material things or not.
It took courage to step out of your comfort zone, Meggy. And it took wisdom, reflection, and love to write what you wrote. I am really proud to have you as my friend. God bless you always!
-Mike
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