God's in the diet dew

Before you dismiss me as a heretic (or a lunatic) let me say the explanation for the title is coming. I have accepted a position with InterVarsity Link. Link is a program that connects American staff with our sister ministries around the world. I have been invited to serve with Ichtus, the Flemish Belgium student ministry. It's kind of a big change. And I mean big like those black & yellow barn spiders that scared me as a kid.

I don't have a good track record of knowing God's will. I have a good understanding of God's moral will--things like don't cheat on my wife or rob the bank. But it's those times when God seems to be giving me some choice that I really get confused. Perhaps those stories will show up in future posts. I'm so thankful that this move to Belgium is not one of those stories. This is a story of God's clear leading, of Scripture coming to life, of God flinging doors wide open.

Mark 2
A little over a year ago God began taking me to the second chapter of Mark, the story of the paralyzed man who gets lowered through the roof by some friends. The first time was at an InterVarsity staff meeting before Source 07, InterVarsity's winter conference in South Dakota. The conference director suggested we pray to be like the friends in the story and bring students to Jesus. Good story, good prayer. The next time was at another staff meeting where we did a devotional level approach to the chapter. Good story, interesting coincidence. The third time I began to really look for what God had for me in this story. And the fourth time was at the beginning of a very special week for me and my family, a week and a lesson in Mark 2 that deserves another post.

Life lesson: When God puts you in a passage of Scripture four times your response should be, "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening."

In pursuing this opportunity in Belgium God has consistently addressed our needs and concerns very directly. Last summer we attended family camp at Cedar Campus, InterVarsity's camp in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The speaker for the week was in Mark and the first session was Mark 2. One night Trina and I were having a discussion about how we should pray about this process (we had not yet applied for the Link program). I said, "Let's just tell God that we want to go and ask him to make the way or stop us." Trina was surprised and said, "I can't pray that!" I was surprised. The issue was that Trina didn't want to leave behind family and life as we know it. She did, however, want to obey. The next morning the speaker was in Mark 10. The verses that hit us will need no explanation. 29 "I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel 30 will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields--and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.
That Scripture was so pertinent that I was elbowing Trina in the ribs.

There are many more examples of how we've seen God addressing our needs and concerns. I'll list them briefly.
*Trina's mom went from "Well, you're not taking my grandkids..." to "You have my blessing."

*Link is a "by invitation" program. The folks in Gent went from "We don't think we're interested in foreign workers right now," to "happy to proceed."

*The ministry needs in Gent fit our gifts, abilities, and family situation very well.

*Social needs: We have very good friends with whom we often play games. When we met the IFES director and his wife she said at one point, "Well, I suppose the most important question is, do you play Settlers?" We didn't at the time (though Settlers of Catan is currently Trina's favorite game), but it spoke into a need for friendship in our lives.

*Friends, acquaintances, friends of friends are gathering our household needs for when we arrive. How to pay for our needs on arrival has been a great concern for us.

*Trina home schooled Elijah for kindergarten. Home schooling is seen as abnormal by many Belgians. We found out that one of only 4 or 5 evangelical Christian schools in the whole country is in the neighborhood where we're looking for housing. We met our kids' teachers, saw some of them in church, and unlike Christian education in the states, it's free!

And then there's Diet Mountain Dew. This has been Trina's staple. Sadly, Diet Mountain Dew is not available in Belgium (it's actually one of the treats we take our missionary friends when we have opportunity). Over the past several months Trina has found that Diet Mountain Dew gives her a stomach ache. She won't even miss it.