Nothing Short of a Miracle

Bible.Is, a new application that is now available on the Internet, free.  It costs you and everyone else in the world nothing to simply click on the site, choose the language of choice from among 1355 languages and counting, and either read, or listen to a dramatized audio recording.  But what seems like a simple website, like thousands of others in our modern times, is nothing short of a miracle.   

Every one of those translations cost an equivalent of close to 1 million dollars – each- to become a reality.  That’s over 1 billion dollars for all 1355 translations, largely from the generosity of millions of Christians aligning their vision with God’s in giving up little things and big things, donating funds to make it possible.  And it didn’t cost just money.  It cost thousands of individuals years of their lives. I know, because I had the privilege to be one of those individuals. The average Bible translation can be 30 years in the making.  That’s an equivalent of 40,640 years of work for all these translations combined.  Many of them sacrificed their families, their health, and yes, sometimes even their lives.  They lived sometimes in very difficult situations for many years, giving up the comfort of things, and the familiar to make this happen. 

Once published, thousands of individuals traveled to each location to train and record dramatized recordings from native speakers…more investments, more personnel, and more time.  All of this over decades, even centuries, because every person involved shared the same vision – the greatest vision in history that binds all these people together under one common cause, one common goal – to bring the Good News to men and women of every race, and to reach literally every corner of earth….Now at such a time as this, with the Internet in place, with globalization at its greatest level in history, we are at the threshold of this dream, this vision, becoming a reality – with a simple click of a button.

   There are still many languages left undone. Approximately 1576 to be exact.  And many still share the vision to finish the task in our generation.  Pioneer Bible Translators is one of many organizations that has aligned itself to be part of God’s strategy to propel this generation toward finishing the task – and we believe it can be done by 2050.  Come, catch the vision, and the heart of God’s passion for His truth to be known to all peoples.  For more information, go to http://pioneerbible.org/within-our-reach-campaign

Finding Myself

I was reading today one of my nursing theory books for a class. It asked me to “think about the reasons you went into nursing in the first place; bring your nursing practice into focus.”

I have to admit that when I think about the real reason I went into nursing, I feel a sense of shame.  I’m not really sure it is an admiral reason. I remember being 10 or 11 at church camp and feeling called to be a missionary. But I was also drawn to other interests at the age of 13 when I began working at the zoo. I loved animals and caring for animals. I don’t really know why, but it fascinated me, and still does, though maybe not to the extreme that it did then. By the age of 15 I was a sort of celebrity at the zoo, one of the first volunteers during that era. I was even interviewed by the local newspaper. Soon everyone began taking notice of me, and the shy little girl that I was became confident and articulate. I could actually speak in public and not be afraid of crowds, getting excited to talk about what I was now passionate about. It seemed that everyone was proud of me and spoke well of me. I enjoyed being in everyone’s favor.

On several occasions I was asked to bring an animal to church and talk to the Jr. church group, sort of like a “show and tell”, a junior Joan Embrey in the making – she was, after all, the epitome of what I aspired to be. I even bought a book about her life. I was so engrossed in my fascination with the animal kingdom, that I took meticulous notes on the subject of anything in the natural world, catalogeuing information for my own personal enjoyment.

One day at church, my mother was sharing with one of her friends how much I loved working with animals and that I wanted to become a Veterinarian. I was within earshot, and my mom’s friend made a side comment to my mother, saying, “It’s too bad she doesn’t care the same way about people.”

That one statement hit me hard. Suddenly I was made to feel that I was doing something inferior, and the guilt of it pierced me like a knife. I remembered my commitment to being a missionary a few years earlier, and felt compelled to change my plans to do something that appeared to others to be more pleasing to God. It was then that I decided to become a missionary nurse.

As an introvert by nature, I found nursing a challenging profession, in that I had to relate to people on a level that I was unaccustomed to. I learned to smile, be kind, and show caring to patients.  It was not in my comfort zone, yet I quickly adapted because I knew that the medical side of nursing thrilled me. At one point I even considered being a doctor, but one individual crossed my path who told me I was not cut out for it. I don’t know how he knew that, and I resented him for saying it, but looking back, I think he may have been right – at least in the context of working in the US.

Africa became the place I could practice “medicine” under the umbrella of nursing, and through the years there of honing my skill, I believe God put opportunities in my path that enabled me to  truly learn to care for people. 

Paradoxically, Africa is also where I became the most compassion fatigued. It was in Africa that I also realized that being a nurse, and for the matter, being a missionary, had the potential to become for me an idol.  I came to the awareness that perhaps I wasn’t doing it for the right reasons. I began to wonder if I was doing all of this to make people proud of me, when deep inside of me I struggled with doing it.  I felt sometimes a deep sense of compassion for people, but other times didn’t want to have anything to do with people, and felt like crawling up into my corner to hide. I think it had a lot to do with setting boundaries so as not to become overwhelmed with the physical needs around me, but it was impossible to walk away from and ignore the never-ending stream of needy people at my doorstep.  

It was also in Africa that I realized that, by walking away from my dreams of being a veterinarian or a zoo keeper, I lost a part of myself.  Now in the Christian sense, we are taught to do this, giving our lives over to God’s will and His plans and purposes. I now believe that that does not mean that we SHOULDN’T do what we have a special interest or giftedness in just because we enjoy it. It means that we give THAT to God, and He can use it for His glory.  I imagine that if I had seen things from that perspective then, I could have been used by Him in that context as well. God needs people who are passionate about His Kingdom in all walks of life. But I chose a different path which, from the outside looked more noble and pleasing to God, but may not have been so on the inside. I still didn't have entirely pure motives. But God doesn’t waste anything. I look back and see that God put that interest in me for a reason. That was a part of who He was trying to make me, the unique self that I needed to become.  I’m thankful that, in spite of my confused reasoning, God still used me to do amazing things in Africa, things I could never have done by myself.  In other words, He got the glory anyway, in spite of myself. I know that I fell short. I also realized that being a missionary is not something that is necessarily more pleasing to God than anything else in and of itself.  Being faithful to him through whatever life throws our way is the most pleasing thing, as well as being what God intended me to be, and my journey in life is in the FINDING of myself within the context of His artistry within me, whether that is as a vet, or as a missionary. God is going to keep teaching us, whatever path we take. Both paths can potentially be within the umbrella of His will, as both paths can potentially be outside of His will. It all depends on the loyalties of our heart.

Looking back, I can see how God used my insecurities, and many other things to hone my thinking and keep it focused on him. I now know how important it is to truly care for a patient the way they need to be cared for, and treat them with the love and caring Christ would if He were standing beside them instead of me. As much as I hated the idea of going back to work once we returned to the US, I realized that if I have to work, then I should be challenged to live out my convictions daily rather than state them when convenient.  It makes me put aside my selfish self and give of myself daily, not just when I feel like it.  I know what it feels like to be the patient, and to be the one not cared for well by a nurse.  I can now treat others the way I would want to be treated, with real compassion, preserving their dignity, and helping them achieve a restored sense of well-being. More than that, God has enabled me SEE people as He sees them, not just the needy poor in Africa, but every person as a dearly loved child of God whom He desperately desires to have by His side one day in eternity. Each one of us is His artistry, a beautifully dyed and woven thread of His tapestry, each one speaking their lives as a reflection of Himself if they choose to allow Him to do so.