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Mission dreams
I always wanted to be a missionary.
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From early on, God seemed to be pointing me in that direction. Since I was a little boy, God surrounded me with people who encouraged me to become a pastor. In school, languages always came easily for me. When I was in college and at the seminary, opportunities to reach out to people from other cultures and other languages were constantly falling into my lap.
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And I enjoyed every single one of them.
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During my seminary days, I would hear the stories of missionaries from the past who traveled to far-off lands or Native American reservations or even the inner cities of the United States, sharing the good news of God’s love with people who didn’t know about Jesus. I would often daydream in class about one day treading where they trod.
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I knew being a missionary meant sacrifice. I knew it meant change. I knew it meant getting out of my comfort zone, but that’s what I wanted to do.
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At first, it looked like my dream was going to come true. My third year at the seminary, I was given the privilege to serve as a vicar at a church in Monterrey, Mexico. After graduating from the seminary, I was sent for a year to serve a congregation in Mexico City, Mexico, and then was permanently assigned to help start a new mission congregation in Miami, Florida, where I would be serving people from dozens of countries who spoke a variety of languages.
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Then came Sept. 11, 2001.
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What is the worst part of a vacation? Preparing for it! Taking care of all the tasks that need to be done before a family getaway is downright chaotic and stressful! Are the suitcases properly packed? Do the kids have everything they need? Did you line up someone to take care of the pets and check on the house? Is there anything you have forgotten? The stress of vacation preparation sometimes makes you wonder if the trip is worth the hassle!
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Family. That’s the common denominator for me. When I’m thinking about Christmas traditions, they all revolve around family. Close family. Extended family. Church family. School family. Work family. Friends and neighbors who have become family. From that first . . .
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As snowflakes fall on a mid-December evening, I carefully wrap gifts in festive paper and ribbon before tucking them under the Christmas tree, while a holiday movie plays on the television. "What's your favorite Christmas memory?” a character asks her best friend. . .
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In Christian churches throughout the world, the virgin birth of Christ is proclaimed every year at Christmas. When the pastor reads or little children recite the words of the prophet in Isaiah 7:14, "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son," this truth is brought back . . .
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