Big Decisions and the Might of the Mite

As it comes increasingly possible that we will indeed leave for Uganda in June, we are confronted with the myriad of details that need to be added to our "To Do" list -- visas, wills, vaccinations, burial instructions, emergency evacuation plans, shipping items to Uganda, buying necessities unavailable there, final meetings with our team, connecting with potential partners....

In the midst of all this, there has been a detail that has moved from the periphery of our vision into the center.  Cross-cultural training.  We did some training with our missions agency when we first came on board, but that was 5 years ago.  Both our family and the Morrows have participated in cross-cultural work through the years, but only as short-term missionaries.  And, most importantly to us, our kids have received hardly any preparation at all!  We've done well in preparing them to leave home behind, but we have not done well in preparing them for what lies ahead.

So, after consultation with Global Teams and several trusted, experienced missionary friends, both the Morrows and we are going to three week training called SPLICE with Mission Training International.  It's a "three-week, pre-departure program...designed to help you–and your family–develop the practical skills and attitudes that will successfully take you through the challenging and rewarding process of being interwoven with another culture."  It's the "and your family" part that especially excites us.  We really want to help Jesse, Georgia, Lucy, and Julia grow in understanding and excitement with regard to their part in this mission that God has given us.

A significant challenge, however, is that we have to raise an additional (one time) $7000 for this training.  I've already struggled with worrying about where this money will come from, even though I know God will provide, as he has done again and again.  I was walking to the mailbox on Saturday with this struggle in my heart.  When I pulled out the mail, I saw an envelope hand addressed to our family.  I knew immediately that it was a check.

My first thought was, "Look!  God has already provided for us.  I bet it's a check for $10,000!"  Yep, that's what I thought.  So quick to focus on the big bucks.  I opened the envelope, and pulled out a check for $10.  (Note the absence of three 0's.)  Before disappointment could set in, however, I noticed whose signature was on the check.  Then I noticed the handwriting and the name on the the accompanying pledge card.

You know the story of the "Widow's Mite" out of Mark 12 and Luke 20?  The widow who gave  gave two pennies to the poor, all she had?  And how she was the one recognized by Jesus as having given an immense amount?  That's pretty much what that $10 check is.  The giver is a girl I babysat back in high school.  She's now a young woman who has endured much and works hard and makes very little -- but she loves Jesus a lot, and she loves my family.  And now she's supporting us monthly with a wealth that outmatches some of our biggest givers, and I know there will be a commitment, prayer, and a love that will accompany that gift through our years overseas.

As I carried that envelope inside, I also carried inside me a confidence that God will indeed continue to provide for his people through the love of his people.

March Movement

Here are tidbits of news about Hines Goings-Ons in Texas:

Partner Development
Not too long ago, the good folks in the office of Global Teams and I had a long phone conversation in which we reviewed our budget one more time and looked at the financial numbers with regard to our pledging and giving partners.  Deep breath -- are now under $700 per month away from our goal!  A few more pledging individuals, families, and churches, and we are released to buy our tickets for Uganda.

We sent out a letter in February, visited a few churches, and had a wonderful gathering at my parents' friends' home.  We're still waiting for official responses from some of these.  Others, including some churches, have come right alongside us.  We are so grateful!  Please pray for the final completion of this part of our preparation.

Team Building 
One of the most enjoyable gifts of this season in Texas has been the time spent with our teammates, Aaron and Wendy Morrow and their kids.  The past couple of Thursdays Wendy walked us through a teaching on gifts, resulting in greater understanding of who we are as individuals and as a team.  We were using material new to me -- Given for Life, by Andy Raine -- which looks at the 7 gifts mentioned in Romans 7, presenting them not as "spiritual" gifts, but as "motivational" gifts.  In short, this approach explores how each of us are shaped at the core of our identities -- why we do what we do.  Some very interesting discoveries came out of this time.


We've also continued learning how to live together with our different personalities, values, approaches to parenting, ways of making decisions....  It's so good to begin working through these things here rather than on the field.

Continue to pray for their daughter, Emma Shae, who still has a blood condition that must be resolved before they are released to go to the field.  One of our next discussions is a timetable given these issues of health and finances.

Family and Farm

 

We continue to enjoy life on the farm with our family, with the recent added bonus of having my older brother's family with us.  The rain has let up enough that we've been riding horses, throwing hay into the hayloft, exploring the back pasture, and riding bikes.  The kids continue to do well in school, and Georgia has recently been enjoying a growing friendship with another girl at school  She has been the loneliest and saddest one among us, so this friendship is a gift.


Just last night we had the added bonus of a visit from a long time friend of ours.  Paul is one of the most amazing guitarists I've heard (and I mean amazing), and one who has a quiet, steady, compelling faith.  He is a joy to be around.  After a wonderful dinner of smoked salmon and salad (prepared by my dad and my wife), we sat on the back porch as the sun set and listened to Paul play everything from "Grandpa Hal Had a Farm, Ee I Ee I O..." to a beautiful guitar piece called "Mayim" to a haunting and contemplative melody on an Indian flute.

It's Spring Break in Texas, and our schedule is in flux, but it's a fun time.  Additionally, I preached at a friend's church this past Sunday on the Lord's Supper and the renewal of covenant (Restoration Anglican Church is a wonderful church, by the way, and folks in the Dallas area should visit it), and we'll be going to another church in Austin where I'll preach on John 9.  We're looking forward to be back in the capital of Texas and seeing whether Austin has remained weird.  If you're in the area, come see us at Christ Church Anglican on Sunday, March 21!

People Behind the Counter

I call them the "People Behind the Counter."  That guy at the register at CVS, the kids at the drive-thru windows of Macdonald's, the waitress as Snuffer's, the store clerk stacking shelves at Giant Eagle, the librarian behind the desk.  These are the people we whisk past throughout our day, hardly seeing them past the immediate service they provide us.  If they're exceptionally kind or exceptionally rude, they'll gain our notice and a few extra comments, but otherwise we give them little but our money and quick questions, and receive in turn our change, answers, and goods.

The truth is, of course, that each of these People Behind the Counter is a creation of God standing there with worlds of pain and joy, disappointment and hope, suffering and life whirling inside him, inside her.  That person fishing for your change is loved by God, and needs to receive that love, and now is the moment when you can be a conduit of that love.

I'm not talking about an extended moment of evangelism, or reaching across the counter to lay hands on and pray for the person, or an attempt to get a person to bare her soul while others wait impatiently behind you.  It might be as simple as making eye contact and giving the most authentic "How are you?" or "Have a good day" that the person will have all day.  (The Lord, of course, may break open the moment for even more grace to flow in.  A simple question like "Why are you so ready for your break?" may lead to a moment of unexpected listening, giving, and receiving.)

I've been trying to do this, to be more present to the people serving me from behind the literal and metaphorical counters.  It's hard.  It requires an internal and external slowness of pace that's not normal for me, and a level of caring that has little space in my hurried, harried days.  So I'm trying to take a moment before I enter a store or restaurant to ask God to remind me that at least one of his sons or daughters is waiting inside to meet with me, and for Him to give me the grace to be attentive and responsive, at least for a moment.