One month from today we will be walking onto the airplane in Prague which will start our journey home. I have been fighting so many emotions today. It is difficult to put into words. I suppose it is normal but it is still not easy. Your mind starts flooding with the questions about what, why, when, how, etc. Other things which bring about stress and doubt lurk around the corner of rational thought. You remind yourself about faith and God’s sovereignty but sometimes that doesn’t even bring about the peace you desire. My children have been embedded deeply into my heart today and even though I will see them in a month… today I just wanted to be with them and hug them. I suppose that was not a manly man type of thing to say (or type) but that is the reality of the situation.
Yet, today has been a good day in some ways. I was invited to come to a local Salvation Army church to share with a senior citizen group. So, at 10:00am we gathered and I was introduced to them. Some I had already met from another occasion when I preached and sang to them on a Sunday morning. There were others who were new to me so I made the rounds and shook hands and smiled at them… trying to break through the language barrier as best I could. My friend Ales translated for me as I addressed them and shared several songs. Most of them were old Southern Gospel songs. Songs like… “I Sing Because” and “The Lighthouse” and “How Great is Our God.” Between the songs I would stop and discuss what they meant to me and asked them if they had any questions about my work or my life as a younger man in the South of the US. We had some very interesting conversations!
After I finished, I was able to talk to a few of the people more intimately and they shared things with me about their lives. I must say that these dear people were a tremendous blessing and encouragement to me and I pray that I was to them as well. One man came to me nearly in tears and told me about how he had been in prison for killing a man when he was younger. The thought of a Great God who was willing to forgive him of such a dark sin was overwhelming to him. Most of these dear folks were believers but the fact that some of them struggle with poverty and hard luck speaks to the fact that God has not granted us a golden egg of comfort and prosperity… not all of the time anyway. I did my best to encourage them to seek peace from the only One who can truly give it to us. Yes, even though I may have been a bit emotional and moody myself today, God gave me another opportunity to be a servant and encourager in His name. Thank you Lord for helping me to look beyond my own worries and needs to share peace with others who need it… amen.
