Swiss Army Knife for God

Fast-forward thirty-two months from November 2011, and now it July, 2014.  I've lost both my mother-in-law and my father-in-law.  My mother, who will be 80 this year, now lives near by in Alpharetta, GA, after 55 years in the Orlando, Florida area.  Eileen is still relatively healthy, but not as agile as she once was.  Randy and Jenn have found a place to serve at a church in Woodstock and have a new addition to their family - a puppy named Mikey. I have changed employers, retired from a regular commitment behind a sound console every Sunday, and Gizmo is now three-and-a-half years old.

And, today I will board a plane at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport headed to Nairobi, Kenya for another mission trip.  This time, I am going to support the Divine Providence Training Center, a theological school for native pastors.  We are taking them donated, refurbished tablets that have been loaded with over thirty Kindle Reader books as well as the complete Bible translated into their native language.  (The people of Kenya are from the Swahili tribe and their language is properly called Kiswahili.). We will also be doing things to support the pastor's wives.  They serve an important role  in their husband's church and are an integral part of the congregation.  Many times they can reach out to the women of the church more effectively than their pastor husband and need to be encouraged, trained, and supported as well.

My role will be to serve as a technical consultant for a variety of electrical, electronic, data, and information management needs at the camp that serves as the school campus as well as at several churches where the students serve.  I plan to mostly just do teaching and training, but I've got a wireless router and a soldering station with me as well just in case.  I don't have any specific agenda, but trust that God has already worked out "chance encounters" that will afford me the opportunity to share my faith along with my skills.  As I told the group as we gathered last evening for a prayer service before we departed, I plan to be a "Swiss Army Knife for God".  He has equipped me with a unique collection of specialized knowledge, skills, abilities, tools, and experiences.  My prayer is that I am able to use these assets not only to make "things" better, but to make people better as well.

It is always a good thing to "give a cup of cool water" in the name of Jesus.  We are called as "Christ-followers" to be about the task of helping the poor, needy, and down-trodden.  We are also called to support and lift up our fellow believers. But, our first and highest calling is to share the Good news of salvation and eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

If you've read this far into my blog, you are either extremely bored, or a member of my family hoping I didn't mentioned you in a negative light.  In either case, thank you. I appreciate your interest in my mission adventure and I ask for your prayers for the safety of our team.  I will endeavor to provide daily updates over the next ten days, so check back, or follow me to receive notifications of new posts.