Tonight is Packing Night!

It's 4.00 am and by this I know that the mission trip is near. While on the trip, God typically wakes me up at about this hour so that we can talk about the day and what He has in store. In the quiet of the day, I listen and God knows this. He want to be sure that I don't miss his voice and his plans for the day! so today he woke me with insight on today, Packing Night.

Packing night... What does it really mean

Tonight most of our team will get together to pack all of the Team supplies. Each of us carries one personal bag and one bag filled with items to be used during the mission trip. As I woke this morning, I began to understand that packing is about so much more than cramming as many supplies as possible into a suitcase while still keeping it under 50 pounds! Packing night is about lives that will be touched and transformed for Eternity!

Packing night is:

Listening... to the voice of God. Each team member who is packing tonight faithfully answered God's call to go into the world to carry His Light into the darkness.

Giving... to people in God's world. Each item that was donated or purchased for this trip has a story behind it. School Supplies... Soaps and Shampoos... Jesus Calling Devotion Books... Each item was given or purchased by a person or a family who wants to be a part of God's story!

Creating... for God's glory. Beautiful embroidered tapestries, t-shirts, sticks, spa kits. Each created using the gifts that God granted and each item will be used to reach hundreds for God's glory!

Living... for Eternity. As I think of packing, I think of each pencil, each crayon, each heart box, each Bible Story, Each gospel of John, each t-shirt not simply as an object placed in a bag but as a life. Think of the magnitude of that! Each item will be given by a man, a woman or a teenager that is deeply in love with Jesus and has a passion for His people! Each and every item will be touched and loved by a woman, a man, a child, a pastor, all loved by God! Each item has the potential of being the vessel through which God's story begins in the life of that woman, man, or child.

Yes, I now understand that packing night is less about packing and more about the Light of Eternity!

Thank you God and 4:00 a.m.

Wendy

Wow! I just can't believe that there are only 2 1/2 weeks until our team leaves for the Yucatan and the village of San Francisco. We have a smaller team this year with 14 people flying to serve on the mission trip. There are many other local people that will help us when we arrive and we can't wait to see them! It feels like we are in the midst of family when we are there! A big family reunion. We know that it is only through God that we have been able to form these friendships with our local partners and the people of the village. He has given us a common bond through Him! We are finishing up with gathering supplies, writing curriculum, learning the lifehouse skit and so much more but soon it will be time to Shine Bright the light of Jesus! We just pray that we would be able to lay down our own agenda and listen carefully for the voice of God and His will for this trip! Please be in prayer for our team, Manuel and Nancy and their children in the village, the local church members and our local partners as we prepare to serve in Mexico. Our prayer is that people will know that Jesus is the only light that will help them learn the truth and the way!