First off, I would like to state to all my wonderful supporters: I am indeed working! You did not donate all your love, money, and prayers just so I could come here and kick back for two months. I know that all my pictures say otherwise, but that is because no one is ever taking pictures while we are working because we are actually working! Ok. Now that I've gotten that out of the way… The most important thing that I've been learning since I've been here in beautiful New Zealand is that ministry doesn't always look like what I think it looks like. For instance, earlier last week, I was scheduled to do some yardwork at a house in Wellington with my team. But during our team morning meeting, our contact asked if anyone would be willing to spend the day at camp instead with his wife (who just had their second baby three weeks previously). I immediately volunteered (I love his wife and daughters, ages 2 years and newborn). So instead of doing the typical "ministry"-type thing, I spent the day watching Dora the Explorer with a two-year old and drinking tea with a friend. There was a part of me that felt a little bit guilty at first for not working outside in the cold rain with my teammates, but I knew that I was where I was supposed to be. Sometimes ministry looks like sitting down with an overwhelmed young mother and just providing her with someone around her age to talk to. In addition, we've been doing a lot of cleaning aroung the camp we're staying at. This may not seem like very much compared to those who are out shouting the gospel from street corners. But the word that the Lord kept bringing to mind every time I would pray over this trip before I left for New Zealand was "refreshed". At first I thought this only meant that He would be refreshing my soul. And while this has proven very true, God is always a much bigger God than I expect. It's become very clear to my team that we are here at this time to bring the Lord's refreshing presence to this camp, the people we meet, and the country of New Zealand. Long story short, the Lord is broadening my view on ministry and showing that He is always bigger than I expect Him to be, and that He works powerfully through what appears to be small actions at the time.
