I’m writing this afternoon from the colossal IAH airport in Houston! Our family, some church friends and I are en route to a week of medical outreach, earthquake rebuilding and elderly care. We’ve been resourced on our way by the kind and generous gifts of many Muslim Connect readers. For this I’m very grateful.
The dozen of us are joined in the gate area by at least two other mission teams (judging by the folks with matching Christian t-shirts!) and a couple of LDS missionaries (judging by the name tags that say “Elder Braden” and “Elder Jayden”)
I’m confident we’re all doing God-ordained, helpful work (Well, maybe not Braden and Jayden!). But get this: If there are 20 of us on this flight, that puts the missionary to Guatemala resident ratio at roughly one to a million! If you’ve been around the mobilization world for a while, you’ll remember that was for a time the ratio of any workers among all Muslims globally. Of course there are additional scads of full time workers in Guatemala, as well as a vibrant healthy church.
I believe with all my heart that God calls who he wants where he wants to do what he wants done.
That said, we need more laborers to the Muslim world where the ratios are not so hopeful. Tons more! Maybe some Guatemalans! In fact, I’ll miss two of the favorite medicos from the place we’re going because they’re off in the Middle East scouting long term opportunities! May God connect them and use them as a vanguard of growing numbers of workers from Central America. And may some from somewhere find God leading them to the remaining 1500 unengaged peoples who still wait for the first ambassadors to arrive.
As God brings us to mind, I’d value your prayers for God’s success for our group, for good health and good attitudes.