Ready or Not...

That wonderful child's game of "Hide and Seek" – 97, 98, 99, 100 – READY OR NOT - HERE I COME!

The whole theme of "Ready or Not" continues through all of life. Am I ready to be on my own? Ready for marriage? Ready to be a parent? Ready to have my oldest move away? Ready to retire?

Right now, my "Ready or Not" is running 42,195 metres. Everything that I have read tells me that either I am ready to run 26 miles 385 yards (for American readers) or I'm not. Tomorrow is April 1^st and I run on the 11^th. Between now and then I taper, which apparently is runner speak for continue to run, but shorter distances than I have in the past few months. I can't even work on my pace anymore. Now is the time to rest and recuperate and heal the muscles and joints that I have been working harder than ever before.

And trust.

Trust that those who have done this before me and wrote about it know what they are talking about.

Trust that after running a maximum of 32 km I can add another 10,195 m knowing that for many runners, 10 km is an achievement in itself. Now I want to add that distance to my longest run ever!

Trust that having disciplined myself for 22 weeks I have done what is necessary.

Perhaps a better word than trust is stupid!

In February I took a week off training to go to Haiti on a medical team. While there, I saw devastation that few have seen or ever will see. Many have said it is the worst disaster in our time. I wonder if I were placed in that situation how I would do. Am I ready? Would my faith flourish or flounder? Would I cry out in hope or anger?

As a follower of Christ I try to do daily disciplines to grow strong in faith and character. Just as I trust those who have run marathons before me, I trust those who have run the race of faith before me. They teach me that as I daily practise walking in the presence of Jesus, I am being transformed and renewed. When trials come, the preparation of walking with Jesus in the good times will carry me through the hard times.

"Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we're in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!" Hebrews 12:1-3 - MSG

"What was the greatest/biggest way in which you saw God move?"

A young man from our church here in Abbotsford asked this wonderful question of me on Facebook – I decided the question is good enough to Blog the answer.

Great question, two things come to mind (sorry - three):

While at worship in Church

Pastor - Hallelujah

Congregation - Hallelujah

Pastor - Hallelujah!!

Congregation - Hallelujah!!

Pastor - HALLELUJAH

Congregation - HALLELUJAH

Pastor - HALLELUJAH!!!

Congregation - HALLELUJAH!!!

Done about ten to fifteen times, in ever increasing volume. In spite of the hurt and fear and loss, the people praise God!

I spent a day under a tent with about 500 people being trained as trauma counsellors. At one point the teacher (part of our team) had some volunteers come and demonstrate a child's game to help kids learn to have fun again.
First two ladies came up and started one of those clapping games that I can never do. Then one more came up so it was three, finally a fourth joined them. They then did the clapping with each other once, twice, three times,... increasing the tempo each time. When they did it the last time at quite a fast pace, the audience erupted in a cheer and had smiles on their faces and laughed. Judy, the trainer, asked, "For how many of you was this the first time that you laughed?"
Many hands went up - God had begun some healing in these souls!

Finally - I watched "The Jesus Film" in front of the former presidential palace. Use Google Earth to find it and see the start of tent cities. These are now crowded with tents and tarps.
Campus Crusade/Power to Change has been using the Jesus Film as an evangelistic tool for years. In Haiti, the people are finding comfort from watching it so Campus is showing it every night!
About 500 people came to watch, we sang some worship songs before the film started and then the film began. The first miracle that Jesus performed was the miraculous catch of fish. The disciples had fished all night and caught nothing. Jesus tells them to put the nets on the other side of the boat and they catch the biggest catch ever.
THE WHOLE AUDIENCE CHEERED!
And so it went through the movie, Jesus raises the girl from the dead, cheering. Jesus feeds the 5000, cheering.
The climax of the movie is Jesus own resurrection from the dead - the place erupted in cheering and clapping.

“Merci” from the people of Haiti!

"Thank you for being here to help." One evening a few members of our team went into downtown Port Au Prince to help show "The Jesus" film, a portrayal of Jesus' life as found in the Gospel of Luke. Well we were there a young man of about fourteen handed a small Haitian flag to one of my team mates and said "Thank you". Andy was totally unprepared for this and said that he was sorry that he had nothing to give in return. The young man replied, "You don't need to give me anything, I just want to thank you for being here to help!"

Since I have returned from Haiti I am often asked, "Did you have a good time?" I know the question is coming but I never quite know how to reply. How can I call a visit to the most impoverished nation in the Americas a good time? How can I say that I had a good time seeing whole city blocks that need to be hauled away in dump trucks and put in a landfill? How can I say that I had a good time seeing parks the size of a city block filled with tents and tarps and bed sheets for protection from the elements? How can I say that I had a good time, knowing that in these tent cities young women would be violated each night? How can I say that I had a good time, knowing that the 494 people being trained as trauma counsellors all slept outside again last night?

I have decided that yes, in spite of these things, I had a good time. I was blessed to be part of a group of seventeen individuals who came together to serve the people of Haiti. We came from three countries and more than ten cities from Vancouver to Boston to Oxford. We quickly went from being individuals to a unified team and by the end a family. Our team was willing to do whatever we could to help, from seeing over 2000 patients to loading a truck with 35000 pounds of food for distribution. I think that everyone on our team would agree that God put us together to help in a very special way and blessed us with fantastic people who are now friends.

 I had a good time because I was able to meet and help some wonderful people who are in a very horrible situation. I have wondered over the years why I am blessed to be living in Canada when others are not so fortunate. I found the people of Haiti to be just like us, only they have been born into poverty. The laugh, they smile, they have friends and families. They would like to have hope for their future, enough food, a home and a school for their children. I am blessed to live in Canada so that I can bless people like the ones I met in Haiti.

I had a good time because I have hope for the nation of Haiti. Many times I wondered if there was any hope. Will the nation of Haiti be rebuilt, and like the Bionic Man, be better than it was before? Will the wealthy nations and people of the world remember Haiti and help her to become a nation that can support herself and even prosper? I have hope, because I believe that God does not want his people to live like they have in Haiti.

I will close with the verses that are the theme of the Nehemiah Vision Ministries where we served:

Then I said to them, "You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace." I also told them about the gracious hand of my God upon me and what the king had said to me.
      They replied, "Let us start rebuilding." So they began this good work. (Nehemiah 2:17–18)

Merci beaucoup and thank you for being part of this journey – Mel Dick