Flexibility

About a month ago, mission one organizer sent an email telling me they had my flight number and mission two organizer sent a payment receipt. That’s it. As I packed for Alaska, I realized how little I really know about the logistics of these mission trips. I guessed about most of what I might have needed to pack. Would I be inside most of the time? Outside? Would I be on my feet a lot? Would I be eating all fish? Would I have any free time? The questions are limitless.

My operations management nature wants to think the organizers are not very good organizers because we all know a last minute confirmation would have been useful and that more details would ensure a better experience for participants…right? Maybe not. I find myself remembering the post The Beginning of … What! that acknowledged a few of my less-than-lovely qualities, two of which included inflexibility and detail-orientation.

What’s funny is that I find myself thinking about the fact that I know so little of the details and perhaps a little of how I might have handled things differently, but I really have no worries about any of what might come my way. It’ll be a big surprise and I’m good with that. I’m not anxious, annoyed, or even irritated about having no clue what to expect. As a matter of fact, I’m kind of excited about all the surprises that lay ahead.

Please pray that this lack of expectations on my part leads to a greater sensitivity of the moving of the Holy Spirit so that I can be in the right place at the right time to meet the right needs. I’m sure the Twelve had no expectations when Jesus invited them to follow him (Matthew 4:19) and look what they helped start.

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