post by~ Brin
I went on my first short-term missions trip to Guatemala when I was 20 years old. I was eager and inexperienced. I thought that I would be working in the health clinic, erroneously assuming my pre-nursing major would make me helpful. I was pretty useless and just ended up translating, but even that was pitiful since my college professor never taught words like flatworms or retained placenta or how to understand shy Guatemalans as they hesitantly shared about very personal health needs to a foreigner. At the end of the trip, however, I had gotten a spark for foreign missions that was later fanned in a month long trip to Indonesia and other trips to Central America and E. Europe. So for me, short-term missions were an integral step in taking the leap into full-time missions.
I also realize that I am somewhat of a rare case. There is a lot of discussion about the value of short-term teams within evangelical circles around the globe. When we transferred ministries last January, Xingu Mission was themselves discussing how short-term teams could best be used. Depending on the particular issue, I sit on both sides of the issue, but I was encouraged to see how short-term missions just recently played out.
This post is Part II of the previous post where I shared about a recent health boat trip. Not only was the Asas health team on the boat but a group of guys from Illinois (no, I didn't know them in my "other life.") who were visiting Brazil as a team of short-term missionaries. Marty, Brad and Chad are old pros at short-term missions and came on this trip to build a church alongside other men from the community we were visiting. I was encouraged to see they had years of relationship with both missionaries and nationals. At one point, when conversation came up about a particular national pastor, I inquired who she was. Marty responded by saying to me, "You don't know her? You ARE new." A short-term trip, with effort, can mean a long-term relationship and these guys demonstrated that in different ways. Each of the guys shared how they planned, prayed and sacrificed to come to Brazil and work alongside others on the construction crew, humbly sharing their lives and their struggles and what they are taking from their visit as equals to everyone else aboard the boat. Could the church have been put up without them? Definitely. They themselves admitted that. God in His graciousness, chooses to use those who humbly make themselves available.
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| The construction guys taking down from the boat supplies to build the church. |
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| This picture is mid- project. At the end the roof and two wall were up, enough to start holding Bible studies and services. |
A big benefit of having North American teams come is that they bring us stuff, items that cannot be bought in our host country or are much more expensive. Missionaries don't like to admit that, but it is a tangible need met. For us, we finally received the aviation tools that many of you have donated to Josh over the last few months. We are humbled and thankful for your provision! Unfortunately, as sometimes happens, one Rubbermaid box arrived in Manuas opened with about 1/3 of it's contents obviously missing. Missing-in-action are some of Josh's tools, some homeschool books and supplies and gifts from my sister and friends.
Besides the church construction, the Illinois guys donated and delivered water filters to families living on the rivers edge. Clean water has profound affects on health and water filters are a practical way of changing the health outcome for an entire family as well as demonstrating the Living Water that the team brings as well.
Marty, Brad and Chad traveled with an organization called Operation Amazon, click here if you are feeling God nudging you towards short-term missions.
