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Today I sit in awe of all the Lord has done. We have four more days left in the village, and every day I am still blown away by the people here and their dedication to the Lord. They are a perfect reminder of what the body of Christ should look like. While they don’t all possess the skills on their own to make this “city on a hill” work, they pool their resources and together set out to accomplish a common goal: to bring light to a dark world.
It reminds me of where Christ himself equips "his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in faith and in knowledge of the Son of God and becoming mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13, NIV). These people are doing just that! They seem to do this without a question in their mind. It makes me wonder: How am I using the gifts God has equipped me with to attain the whole measure of Christ?
Becky Mann, one of the ITDP staff members, told us about a family whose son goes to school here in Mo Oh Jo. They live in an extremely animistic village. The boy became ill so the family consulted many witch doctors and offered many sacrifices to their pagan gods, but nothing worked. The ITDP staff heard of the boy’s illness and on their down time they traveled to this village 200 kilometers away to pray over this boy. The young boy gradually got better and recovered. The family, after experiencing all this, made the decision to follow Christ, leaving their pagan gods behind and going against the social norm of their village.
After traveling to the village to pray over the boy, the staff traveled back again to remove all the idols from the family’s hut. They will be going back this Sunday to bring the family to Mo Oh Jo to be baptized. The thing that struck me was the staff didn't have to do that. They could have easily said no. After all, they were off the clock. Instead, they gave up their own personal time and made the long journey to the boy's village out of love. They had nothing to gain from doing that, but the Lord had everything to gain. They are a pure and profound example of the love of Christ.
Through all of this the Lord is breaking me of my pride. When was the last time I was willing to do something for someone who could give me nothing in return? I’m having a hard time coming up with just one example. It's been so easy for me to get wrapped up in my own world and to forget what it’s really like to focus and love on other people.
The villagers have nothing. They have every right to focus on themselves, on the daily tasks of providing for their own families, yet they choose to help each other. They choose to serve one another in love. I pray that myself and my team would learn to love as selflessly and willingly as the people of Mo Oh Jo. They truly glorify the Lord and are a light in such a dark world!