2010 MISSION TRIP – REPORT 3
Sabbath morning we all were picked up at different times and spread out to our various churches. After preaching our first sermon on Friday night, we took off on Sabbath morning to preach on the Signs of Christ’s Return. Most of us stayed all day in the same church. On the way to my church, the pastor asked me to have a seminar in the afternoon for his church leaders, on Christian Leadership. I had told all the students participating in this mission trip that they needed to be ready at all times for being asked to do something at the spur of the moment that they had no idea they would be asked to do. So… guess who got put on the spot. Me! Fortunately, by the blessings of God, I had given a sermon for church officer dedication in the Stroudsburg Church some months ago, with leadership lessons from the life of Moses. I had that on my computer, and Sabbath afternoon, before the 3 p.m. seminar (that I was giving!!!) I was able to adapt that to fit this setting.
During the church service, the pastor said he was going to do a presentation. In the Hispanic culture, a presentation is pretty much like a child dedication in the Anglo churches. So I said, “That’s fine.” So when the pastor stood up to begin the presentation service, and call the family forward, at the time for the baby dedication prayer, the pastor turned to me and said, we want you to have the prayer. So I got to hold the precious little baby and offer the dedication prayer. She was so good during the prayer, and it’s been such a long time since our two children were that size, that I almost didn’t want to hand her back over to the parents.
Sabbath morning we all were picked up at different times and spread out to our various churches. After preaching our first sermon on Friday night, we took off on Sabbath morning to preach on the Signs of Christ’s Return. Most of us stayed all day in the same church. On the way to my church, the pastor asked me to have a seminar in the afternoon for his church leaders, on Christian Leadership. I had told all the students participating in this mission trip that they needed to be ready at all times for being asked to do something at the spur of the moment that they had no idea they would be asked to do. So… guess who got put on the spot. Me! Fortunately, by the blessings of God, I had given a sermon for church officer dedication in the Stroudsburg Church some months ago, with leadership lessons from the life of Moses. I had that on my computer, and Sabbath afternoon, before the 3 p.m. seminar (that I was giving!!!) I was able to adapt that to fit this setting.
During the church service, the pastor said he was going to do a presentation. In the Hispanic culture, a presentation is pretty much like a child dedication in the Anglo churches. So I said, “That’s fine.” So when the pastor stood up to begin the presentation service, and call the family forward, at the time for the baby dedication prayer, the pastor turned to me and said, we want you to have the prayer. So I got to hold the precious little baby and offer the dedication prayer. She was so good during the prayer, and it’s been such a long time since our two children were that size, that I almost didn’t want to hand her back over to the parents.
Saturday evening, our church was very full, with not only members, but also guests and visitors.The children, small and primary age, at each church are precious. They love to come up to each one of us, with smiles and eager eyes. At my church, on the first night, 3 boys came and sat right next to me on the front bench.
One of the boys is the son of the head elder, and I had encouraged him -- when I saw him on Thursday night when we went to the church to practice our driving times and to practice setting up the computer and projector – to bring a friend on Friday night. If he brought a friend, I promised him a surprise. So when he came in with 2 friends, I gave him a “Lifesaver.” His little friend sat right up next to me, and kept staring up at me the whole time, like I was some kind of alien or sports hero. Hopefully, he could see Jesus shining through me. The head elder has 3 children, one of whom is about 3 years old. She beams me a smile all the time, and she has started her own version of a game of tag with me. When I am not looking, she will sneak up and tap me on the knee or back or arm, scoot away a little and then look up to see if I notice. Even though neither one of us can speak to each other in a language we can understand, we have no difficulty understanding the language of shared joy and humor.
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