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Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Team Leader Epiphany

This particular epiphany came to me during church on Sunday, and related more to my wandering anxious thoughts being addressed by the Spirit in the atmosphere of worship and community than to the text or the sermon . .

God, and only God, can work all things together as in Romans 8 so that the earth is healed, the Kingdom comes, and individual good is maximized. I, on the other hand, often find myself thinking I have to hold in tension what might be good for a team mate and good for the team. In God's economy, those two goals are one. And for that I'm thankful. Because as a team leader, there are times when an individual seems to be struggling, to be unhealthy or depressed, to be homesick or floundering, to want to go back "home" . . . and one wonders if we do them a disservice to allow them to continue to serve here simply because their efforts as so much needed and valued. On the other hand, there are also times when someone wants to stay here, wants to push on through in spite of high levels of stress . . . and one wonders if we do them a disservice to allow them to stay because we need them. And for most of us, those two states can occur multiple times over the course of a year, or a day! As I sat thinking through this in church, how to encourage someone who dreads much about their life here and makes comments about wishing to leave, or how to wisely advise someone who might need a break they don't really want to take . . it was a great comfort to grasp, once again, that God always works so that an individual's needs are best met by the team's and the Kingdom's needs being best met, too. Whether that means extending a term or shortening it, He knows what He is doing.

So our job is to listen, to support, to watch, to trust.

And this morning my Sunday epiphany was confirmed, as we were led in prayer. A young team mate who decided to stay in Bundibugyo an extra year (and then felt the brunt of the loss involved) led us in looking at Mark 14, and the contrast between Judas who followed Jesus in order to gain something (and therefore felt it a burden) and Mary, who followed Jesus because of love (and therefore could pour out her precious oil to anoint Him). Given that it is one of my favorite stories and we also sang one of my favorite hymns . . . but I also came away from the prayer time awed that God is indeed weaving good for my team mate and good for all of us out of her difficult decision, that He speaks to her words of love as she pours out her life in a way that many might question. So I breathe a bit more deeply and entrust her into His plans, and feel encouraged to trust the rest of our team to stay there as well.

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