2 minute read
Pastor Paul’s Passages by Paul Ragel
by PAUL RAGLE
Candace on a Mission
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andice returned from a mission trip to Jamaica with her local church. There, she had visited children in a local orphanage and had read story books to them.
The group also visited homeless adults who had taken shelter in a medical clinic. Upon her return home to Oklahoma, Candice told her parents, “Thank you for letting me go on the mission trip. My life is changed forever!” That’s the kind of anecdotal evidence a pastor delights to hear after planning, promoting and sponsoring a mission trip with kids and adults from her/his congregation. It’s not unusual for young people to report to their families that they had “fun” on a service trip, but to hear a young person say, “My life is changed,” is truly amazing. I’ve participated and planned many service trips and opportunities for youth and adults.
We’ve taken puppet ministry to share with inner city folks. We’ve worked on Habitat for Humanity homes in various states. We’ve performed plays and musicals in churches and local communities across America. We’ve
Chelped bring Vacation Bible School to kids in foreign lands. Having exerted great effort to invite local church people into mission opportunities, I’d like to think that these experiences have made a difference. Does all of this matter to the people who have served and who have been served? One thing separates the “Candices” from those who are merely having fun participating in service ministry: Candice and folks like her whose lives are transformed by participating in mission have discovered that the persons to whom we share our “gifts” in such work are valued and gifted people. These people are “gifted” and have much to teach them. A little boy kept interrupting Candice as she read to a group of younger children. Another volunteer was trying to hush the boy, but Candice could see “wheels turning” in his head, the spark of insight which accompanied his questions. Candice received the gift he brought to her that morning.
Candice’s life is forever changed.
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