How I was “Called.”

How I was called into The Mission Field:

It’s ironic. This is the third time I have written this
blog. I have been on three different India team blog pages because I have
changed the date of the trip I wanted to go on. Secretly, I think God has been
trying to tell me that I need to get my information more accurate for when I
blog; every time I have written on the subject of the mission field I have
written about something different. J
God has a sense of humor, this I am sure of!

Ok, let me try this again…How I was called into the mission
field:

I think every Christian is called into the mission field,
but if we are specifically speaking of overseas missions then here’s my story.  One thing you will learn about me is that I
have an amazing imagination and I dream a lot, doctors like to call this
personality aspect that I obtain “Attention Deficit Disorder.” Anyways, I do
dream a lot, I simply cannot help it. Ever since I was in middle school I have
had this weird obsession and dream to be in France. I always chose French as my
foreign language to study in school, and my room has been decorated in French décor
since I was fifteen. I would always pray
that God would send me to France one day for whatever reason He chose.

As I got older though my desire grew bigger; I wanted to see
France and every country. It’s true, when I meet someone from another country
there is a pull on my heart that aches to see the places that the foreign
person has seen. As I have mentioned before I was able to go to Africa the
summer of my junior year in high school. My mom claims that I was bitten by the
missionary bug and that my heart was left in Zimbabwe. Her statement could not
be more truthful.

Being a twenty year old in college the question of choosing
my future is constantly in the back of my mind. My peers are choosing career
paths whether it is medical school, architecture majors, teaching license,
seminary etc. However, all I can think about is being in another country and
spreading the word of God and being with a people that are completely different
than me. There is an expectation over my head to be successful and to have a
stable job, especially in the poor state of our country’s economy. I’ve always
known that God would not let me live an ordinary life, and to me being a
missionary in another country is far from ordinary.

Honestly, I did not want to go to India. When I first
applied for the trip I had selected Kenya. However, something didn’t seem right
about it. After praying I decided to change it to India. I began reading up on
India, and looking on Google images to see what it looked like. My heart began
to ache to be there. I realize that every country has people in need of God,
and physical and emotional resources. But there is something about India that
makes my heart yearn for it. Perhaps it
is God pulling on my heart and preparing me for the mission trip.

So many times since I have applied for this trip I have had
feelings of inadequacy. I keep coming to God in confusion; I can’t seem to find
what it is that I could offer to the people of India that would better their situation.
However, every time I go to God with this question, He tells me, “Jordan, you
have me to give to these people.”

I recently met a man who is from India. He works for my mom,
indirectly, and my mom told him about my trip. He was so excited to hear what I
was going to be doing, and he told my mother he wanted to help me prepare in
any way possible. He came to my mom one day, and told her that the best advice
he could give to me was this, “Do not go to India with a judgmental mind set.
Do not think yourself better than those you are helping. Being Jesus is the
best way you can help and reach the people in need. Show them Jesus by loving
them whole heartily.” The ironic twist to this advice is that the Indian man is
not a Christian. He claims that there is a possibility of many gods. But even
he realizes there is something different about a Christian. And he is right.

There is really no “How” in relation to me being called into
the mission field. It’s simply something God has laid on my heart to do. In
reality though, as mentioned before, all Christians are called into the mission
field. God has told all of his believers to go and make disciples of all
nations. For me, in this season of my life, God has called me to go to India.
He wants me to show the people of India who He is.

It’s like Jeremiah, in the bible, says, “But if I say, ‘I
will not mention him or speak any more in his name,’ his word is in my heart
like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I
cannot.” (Jer. 20:9)