Ethiopia: Till We Meet Again

Acts 13:3 tells us that the church at Antioch sent out some missionaries. If you recall, they came back when the work was completed (Act 14:26).

In some ways, this post is a tribute to my precious wife.

Most of you know Molly and I went to Ethiopia together. I have always wanted Molly to go on a mission trip with me, but I guess you could say she never felt led. In fact, there were reasons she had not gone: children, fear of flying, etc.

When Molly said she felt led to go on this trip, I was excited and pleasantly shocked. As the date of our departure neared we both experienced the emotion of leaving our three children. Several weeks prior to leaving I would hear Molly sniffling at the computer.

“Molly, are you okay?”  She told me that she was writing the children notes in case she did not make it back. I was busy working on my own deadlines for school and did not give it much thought until she asked me to print the letters and get them in an envelope several days before our departure (the letters were to be entrusted to some friends in the event of ________). 

I remember going to my office and printing them off – I couldn’t help myself – I just had to read. As I read, I cried like a baby. Basically, if Molly were to not come home she told our kids to not be mad at God – for in fact she went willingly and out of obedience to the Lord’s calling. She went on to tell our kids that God has a plan for their life and she did not want them to waste their time being mad at God.

As I read, I thought to myself – my wife is a wonderful mother. She not only knows her children, but she loves the Lord and desires to follow Him even if it meant entrusting the raising of her children to someone else (I guess she thought I was going to _______ also).

After reading her letters, I decided to write one (with tears).

A lesson I learned: It is a very refining process to surrender yourself and your family to God. God knows best – while it is easy to say – the reality check comes when we attempt to actually live what we say.

While the above picture is of a mom who was excited to see her children, it is also of a woman who said, “The next I come I want to…” Wow, the ‘next time?’

On a lighter note: Molly ‘hates’ to fly. She feels every bump and every bump is huge to her. Our flight home had a few bumps (nothing bad – but bumps can be relative depending on who you are). The look Molly has on her face is, “Jason, can you do anything about this?”

Like I said in an earlier post, I love my wife! She is wonderful, and I know this sounds funny, but I am proud of her – not just because she went to Ethiopia – but because she really is a Proverbs 31 woman. Molly is the real deal and for all those who know us well – it’s true – I married up.