March 29 – I can see clearly now…

Short-term mission trips are a ubiquitous feature of the lives of many American churches, LPC included.  Over the past thirty years or so millions and millions of American Christians have donned brightly colored team t-shirts and traveled the globe to build houses, run Vacation Bible Schools, serve soup, pass out tracts, offer medical care and much more.  LPC has opted out of the brightly colored team t-shirts, but we’ve done our share of short-term mission trips.

At their best, short-term mission trips are of a help to our global mission partners and open the eyes of North American Christians to the reality of life in the “two-thirds” world.  At their worst, their affect has been summarized by an important book, “When Helping Hurts,” and by the online hucksters who offer sucker churches an opportunity to give their members “a vacation with a purpose.”  “Vacationaries” they call us.  One week to change the world. Non-sense.

I think I can say with some confidence that LPC has avoided the deepest pitfalls of the short-term mission movement, but we have stumbled from time to time, tripped by our own cultural expectations, a shallow understanding of other cultures, and by trying to place the gospel in too small a box.

One week a year for many years, 15-20 LPC folk have, brightly colored team t-shirts not included, traveled to the highlands of Guatemala to participate in short term mission alongside our partners at Promised Land Ministries.  Most of us know the drill even if we’ve never traveled outside Bucks County.  Clinics are run, houses are built, children are told the stories of Jesus.

But one week a year – even year after year – means little of itself and barely changes anything.

So why keep going to Guatemala?  Or Brazil or Burundi or even North Philadelphia?  The most important thing we do in our week on the shores of Lake Atitlan is the encouragement we offer those who live and love and minister on the shores of Lake Atitlan year after year in long obedience to the call of Christ.

Promised Land School and Gennesaret Clinic, one of the year-round projects of PLM in San Lucas Toliman, you see, are changing that corner of the world in the name of Christ. And we are there, even when our team, sans brightly colored t-shirts, is long gone.

Just this week Jorge Santizo, Missions Director for PLM, forwarded a photo taken by Dr. Andres, the of Gennesaret Clinic. Six Guatemalan girls. And what do they have in common?  Each is wearing a pair of glasses. And the fact of the matter is, if the LPC team had not been in San Lucas Toliman two months ago, these six girls would still have to squint to read the words on the chalkboard in their classrooms.

An LPC ophthalmologist assesses the sight of the kids at PLM school. He and Dr. Andres look for a solution to a problem he notes.  Generous support from the folks back home allows LPC to help fund a solution.  A few weeks later at least six Guatemalan girls are seeing clearly for first time in a long while.  Tiny parts of big world changed in the name of Christ.

It’s not too early to be praying about joining next winter’s Guatemala Mission Trip.  You may have to use some vacation time to be a part of the team, but we’re not going on a vacation.  And you won’t get a brightly colored team t-shirt.  Please don’t go expecting to change the world. Go expecting to be used to encourage some faithful servants of Christ who have dedicated their lives to living the Gospel on the shore of Lake Atitlan.

See you Sunday