Missions and Slacklining

Now, what does slacklining have to do with missions?  (*Note - if you don't know what slacklining is, watch the videos first. Be forewarned though, they are not for the faint of heart :) )

A whole lot actually.  If I see a slackline video come across my Twitter feed, I almost always watch it; I just can’t help myself.  They’re these crazy videos of people who are absolutely fearless, or so we think.  The truth is, they have simply learned how to live with the fear and conquer it.

Overseas missions is similar.  Our CEO asked me yesterday what I feared the most about moving to Spain in 2 short weeks.  I responded that I don’t really have a lot of fear to speak of; I have concerns of course, but not really fears.  Other people posed this question to me when I went to Myanmar and I said the same thing, but quickly switched after I remembered how my good friend Ryan drove in Myanmar and how it always scared me a bit.

Anyway, fears come and go.  It seems like I have more anxiety than fear these days.  Not a lot to be sure, but enough that it can grab my attention.  I know Jesus will work everything out for our good, but sometimes I take my eyes off Him and onto myself; similar to taking your eyes off the slackline.  If you watch the Go Pro video embedded in particular, you will see what I mean.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus, as the old hymn goes, and the things of Earth will grow strangely dim.  For me that relates primarily to the worries of life.  It’s extremely difficult to do; our worries can surface to the front of our minds in about a nanosecond.  Turning our eyes upon Jesus on the other hand, now that’s a real discipline to cultivate.  Some people practice what’s called contemplative meditation, others connect better with interacting with Scripture by reading and journaling in response to what they read.  Whatever it takes, it’s worth it to center yourself around the teachings of Christ.

That’s what I’m trying to remember in this season of transition.  Everything around me is about to change dramatically, so now more than ever it is vital to center myself on Jesus and His love for me.  The old saying that the only constant in life is change fails at the most basic level.  Jesus is the ultimate constant in our life.  He is there in the midst of our ever-changing lives.