Post number 29 is coming in hot and is actually a blog written by my dear old dad! I didn't want to give him any stipulations, but rather just asked if he would be willing to write a blog about whatever he wanted; how he was feeling about The World Race/me leaving, his take on missions, would he have ever done this at my age... literally ANYTHING. Last night he told me that he had finished writing his blog and handed it over to me to read. Needless to say, I'm quite excited to be able to share what he wrote with all of you. Dad, I love you and thank you not only for writing this letter but also for your love, the godly example you are for our family, and for telling me "go!" In a way, it means the most of all.
Go, such a small word with so many choices and implications. A word that a parent hears everyday. "Can I go to my friend's to spend the night?" "Can we go shopping?" "This is boring, can we go?"
About a year ago, Meagan told us she felt God was leading her to go on a year long mission trip to several different countries and continents around the world. At first we were very casual about it. After all, a year was such a long way off and so much can happen in a year. Yet, here we are counting down the final days before she launches off and follows God's calling.
If you have followed Meagan's blog these last months then you know how amazing and humbling it has been to see the things God has done to prepare and provide for her. On behalf of our entire family, we want to say thank you to so many who have helped her make this trip possible through your generous, heartfelt gifts. Please continue to pray for her and the entire team as they embark on this journey in October.
When Meagan asked me if I would be willing to write something on behalf of our family, I thought that the words would come much easier when it came to expressing how we truly feel. So how do we feel? Anxious, nervous, concerned, proud, and everything in between. While our emotions are mixed, we are not surprised. You see, Meagan has never been one to take the easy path, never afraid to challenge herself when it comes to obeying what she believes God is calling her to do in life.
We should have known the first week after Meagan was born that this little girl was going to be different. She was the poster child for all children with colic. Parents everywhere cringe at that word. No sleep, constant crying (night and day), bleary eyed parents not knowing what to do to make it stop. For months, the only way Meagan would sleep at all was by running the vacuum cleaner. I actually awoke one night to the smell of burning carpet and consequently decided to make a tape of the beautiful sound of a Hoover vacuum. Eventually the sleepless nights passed and things began to get better, until...
When Meagan was about 3 years old she began to have episodes of unconsciousness. Passing out, not breathing, turning blue in the face for 5-10 seconds but for what seemed like an hour. We took her to a heart specialist and after much testing they could not find anything to attribute the episodes to. I was so desperate for an answer. One Sunday night at church the nursery worker came and got my wife and me and told us that Meagan had passed out for a few seconds. After getting home that night I went to my bedroom and began to cry out to God for help.
I know God speaks in many ways, but he always speaks to me through His word. I grabbed my Bible and opened it up and began to read. The passage was Jeremiah 29:11-13. God assured me that He had a plan for Meagan, me, and everyone who will seek Him. A plan for peace, a plan to reveal His love and His truth. I knew that God had a plan for Meagan, and that gave me peace.
For brevity's sake, I will get to the point of this blog. 20 years later Meagan told us she felt God was leading her to go to Chicago to pursue her dream of theater and comedy studies. For one year Meagan pursued her dream and it was a very difficult year for her and for us as she worked to make things happen. Little did she know, God was leading her in another direction.
You see, Meagan has to go where God desires her to be. That's what God has intended for her to do. Why? There is a little boy in Belize that needs to hear her story, there is someone in Romania thats needs to hear her sing "Jesus Loves Me" while she plays her ukulele, there is a family in Uganda that needs to see the love of Jesus through her. She has to go, and so do we. Maybe not to Africa, but to the room right next door to tell a family member about Jesus.
"Go" to your coworker or classmate with a word of hope and encouragement. Go to the one who has given up and thinks no one cares and let them know Jesus sees them and loves them. Go to the one who may look differently, act differently, and think differently than you. Goto the neighbor, go to your friend, go to your enemy and everyone in between and tell them "For God so loved the world!" So Meagan, Go!
With all of our love, prayers, and blessings. Go!
Dad, Mom, Sarah, and Maddie
