What would you say to a person if you knew that you might not see them for another year, if ever, again? Perhaps it depends on the person. You would probably want your friends and family to know that you care about them and will miss them. But what about strangers? Most of us probably wouldn’t give them a second thought.
But this is not the attitude that we find from Jesus in the Bible. In fact, scripture is full of examples of Jesus showing compassion and concern for many he had never met before, and might never see again during his earthly ministry. One notable example is found in Luke, chapter 19. Here, Jesus is in Jericho on his way to a royal welcome in Jerusalem. Instead of passing directly through the city, he paused to recognize Zaccheaus, the the chief tax collector of the region, and a stranger. Scripture tells us that because of this detour salvation came to the house of Zaccheus that day.
Tonight the team had our final extended meal with the students. In this meeting, there were many new faces: mostly friends of the campers. The natural reaction of the mission team might have been to dismiss these newcomers as strangers, not related to the camp ministry. Many of our team now are just “passing through” on their way to Prague tomorrow. I was pleased to see Jesus’ heart for “strangers” displayed in the members of the mission team. Every conversation has the opportunity to share the love of Jesus. Perhaps, God will use even these conversations to bring about salvation.
Tomorrow we say farewell to eight members of the mission team: Betsy, Andrew C, Shelby, Quincy, Andrew M, Faith, Jessica and Sophie. After the church worship service, there will be a brief lunch, and a sendoff at the town’s train station. These are always tearful partings, but that is probably a story for tomorrow.
Prayer Requests:
- Safe travels for the 8 mission team members that are returning to the United States.
- Health for the interns and the Sandy family during their extended stays in the Czech Republic.
- Blessing on the Czech leaders that God continues His work in the lives of those He touched at English Camp and the follow-ups.