As In a Mirror

Yay! I have finally prepared the next portion of my story update. Please visit The Brick Buster, who got us started on this, and read what he’s got so far!

Ben followed Alex out to the deck, where the girls were waiting with the chief of the mission, some doctors, builders, dentists, and other volunteers. The chief, Mr. Decker wrapped up what he was saying to the adults, then called the kids, the four and some others, down to his office.

“Kids, I hope you all understand that this is not a vacation by any means, not an adventure. We are not here to help some helpless Indians; they do not need our help; they need Jesus. They also need things for their lives. We are here as nothing more than servants. Work is not going to be easy or even fun at times; there’s gonna be a lotta tension; there’s a lotta diseases, disasters, different cultures and languages. But if you are here for nothing other than to serve the Lord, believe me, you will have fun! Ben and Alex, I’m gonna put you as on call; do all the heavy lifting for the old folks.”

The boys grinned.

“Jade and Lanie, let’s put you in with Arlene. She sorta helps direct the projects, but she will be calling you do work in the kitchen or give the doctor a hand giving a kid a shot, etc. And for all of you, Kip Jones is the one to talk to if you’re having trouble with the language. He knows it all, and will show you how to communicate with the Indians without words. You’ll see what I mean.”

He continued to give everyone their assignments, then appeared to be done. But with a sigh, he took his glasses off and said, “These people are really desperate; and it’s only because we are on a relief mission that the government even let us down here. They want to keep outsiders away from these Indians as much as possible. There are so many people whose lands are being threatened by crooks who want it. There’s also a lot of violence down here, a lotta war. You remember Operation Auca? Yeah, stuff like that is still going on, but not all of it has such a happy ending. Remember Chet Bitterman? But at least they found his body; others they never see again. Russell Stendal was held hostage, but lived to tell about it. Unfortunately, it’s not always that way.”

Lanie interjected, “Yunno, I read a lot about the history of missions down here before coming, and one story I learned about a lot was Operation Auca. Even Ed McCully’s body was lost on the river within a matter of days; they never found it.”

Mr. Decker smiled, “So you decided to come prepared?”

Alex: “Oh, that girl does her homework.”
This lightened the mood and make everybody chuckle.

Mr. Decker’s voice grew solemn once again, “Missionaries have been leaving these countries because of the danger; there have been a lotta people killed by the guerillas. White people’s presence sometimes threatens the Indians! Yunno, about twenty years ago in Colombia, my mission got news that a missionary had left her village by canoe, and never returned. It was during one of the hottest times of the war, and others had warned her not to go. What was her name again? Ann…?” He paused. “Arlene, what was the name of that missing lady missionary? Twenty years ago, I think the search first started. They quit some years ago?”

Arlene: “Oh, yes, Annie Marshall, an American. Left to find out what happened to an Indian courier. Never came back, friends said. They even hired professional detectives and search pilots from different countries to find some trace of her, for about 3 years. Didn’t get a lot of media attention, but what was covered made it sound like a woman wandering into the woods and getting lost.”

Mr. Decker: “Yes, so that is the grim truth out here, and that is not the only instance of stuff like this happening. So as you can see, there’s an awful lot of danger down here, much of it from nature itself. The cost is just huge, but not compared to Calvary. It’s easy to get scared sometimes, but really, the most that man, beast, or nature could do to us is take our lives, and that’s just nothing! So remember kids; remember why you’re here. Remember what has brought you here, from where you came, and remember to let Him work His will.”

While the kids left to start getting familiar with the tasks ahead, they pondered Mr. Decker’s talk.
Lanie: “Colombia. Wow, that country’s suffered so much. And to think it’s not too far away from us.”
Jade: “No, it isn’t. But even on these mission trips, doesn’t it seem that it’s still so hard not to look at things from the inside of the boat? It seems we are so afraid sometimes.”
Alex: “Or maybe it’s that we’re distracted. Yunno, I really think that we should always be praising the Lord for His goodness, and not focus on the evil in the world. Cuz when we look at the One who owns the world, we know that He’s in control, so we’re not afraid to step out of the boat.”

Alex to Ben: “Not saying much, are ya now?”
Ben: “Talk little, think much.”
Alex: “Good policy, but I would give a penny for your thoughts.”
Ben holds out his hand.
Alex: “Silly. I traded all my change for pesos when we got here.”
Ben: “Well, I think the last penny you gave me will suffice for this thought. I’m thinking about what Mr. Decker said about us remembering why we’re here. Then I think about those who came before us. Weren’t they here for the same reasons? Like Jim Elliot and those guys, Chet Bitterman, Russell Stendal, and… Annie Marshall, and everybody else whose names we don’t know. Didn’t the same One who sent us send them, and wasn’t He working His will? But what will in the death of those people? Their death was the end of a lot. What’s the big picture? We can look at Jim Elliot and Nate Saint spell out that if they didn’t die, the Huaorani wouldn’t have been saved. But what a high cost it was for those families! And what about Chet and Annie? I wonder sometimes if we are too blind to see what the big plan is there, or what’s going on.”

Alex: “I guess you do think much. Let’s get the eye doctor’s office set up, eh?”

So it is rather long, but I think that’s a good thing because I was able to get to it WAY sooner than I expected. It was kinda funny writing, cuz in between all that serious stuff there are humorous bits. Feel free to leave a comment and tell me what you think so far; I am so desperate for your thoughts. I also wanted to say that I am SO excited about everybody else’s stories, cuz they sound just so GOOD so far! (No pressure, anybody!) And let me know if you are starting to feel heartwrenched, cuz… I was thinking it would get REALLY intense, but I am willing to calm down for the sake of my readers.