From Russia, with Growth

In cleaning out my closet this week, I found a box of souvenirs, photographs, and a journal from a two-week missions trip I took to Russia in high school. Having just returned from a month-long trip to Japan, I couldn't help but not some interesting contrasts:

· We used film cameras back then! And instead of just tagging people on Facebook, we made duplicates to give to our friends. I even paid extra to have all my photos scanned onto a floppy disk (now completely useless since I don't have a floppy drive!)

· Wow. I actually went out in public with hair and clothes like that.

· Ten years of ministry, life experiences, and theological education has paid off, giving me far more opportunities than I thought possible.

· It's interesting to note that in my journal I struggled with how this missions trip felt more like a vacation. On the other hand, my recent trip to Japan was purely personal but felt more like missions than anything I've done in years. I think the major difference is the relationships I've formed in Japan. (The Russia trips also became much more fruitful in later years as relationships developed.)

· My sense of humor has not matured much.

· Then, as now, the Holy Spirit does what he wills, and it is his presence that makes ministry fruitful. On both trips I noted that the things I thought I had to offer, whether teaching or preaching or evangelistic dramas, were not the things that people most appreciated. While they were glad for what I had to say, it was things like attitude, personal testimony, and a willingness to listen and pray—in short, the day-to-do workings of the Holy Spirit in our lives, which we have little conscious control over—that really reached people.