unknown shores
In 2023 I went on my first mission trip ever. My husband Chris had gone on several mission trips at this point, including to Mexico, Haiti, Romania, and Alaska, and we had talked about going on one together for years. When we were given the opportunity to go to Romania, to assist the same church as Chris has before, we jumped at the chance.
Now, it is my personal opinion that everyone should go on a mission trip outside their country at least once in their lives. I think it would be great if it would be required of every high school student to do so before they graduate - if only to appreciate the abundance we have here at home. As I said, it was my first mission trip, and my first time overseas. The flight from Detroit to Amsterdam was close to eight hours, plus another 2-3 hours to Bucharest, and another 3 hour car ride to Băneasa. It was a long, exhausting day. I distinctly remember standing in the parking lot of the Bucharest airport while we loaded all of our luggage onto the vans. I remember realizing that I was farther from home than I had ever been, in a foreign country where I knew nothing, knew no one, couldn’t speak the language - and why wasn’t I afraid?
Philippians 4:7 speaks of a “peace that surpasses all understanding.” God’s peace, which goes beyond human levels of knowledge. And I felt it, in that moment. There were countless unknowns. I knew nothing. I was helpless, in that strange place. Yes, of course I had people to rely on - my husband, my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ - but if I didn’t, I felt like I was still safe. Like I had nothing to worry about, which is honestly true when I remember to lean on the Lord.
The phrase that came out of my first mission trip was, “What is unknown to me is known to the Lord.” I may not know everything, and I don’t have to. If I believe that God is all-seeing and all-knowing, and better yet - that He is good and kind and has “plans to prosper and not to harm” me (Jeremiah 29:11), then there truly is nothing to worry about.
Going back to Philippians 4, this is exactly what the peace that surpasses all understanding is referring to. Philippians 4:6-7 reads:
“Don’t wory about anything; instead, pray abut everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”
God always has our best interests at heart. He knows that worry and anxiety is not good for us. For me personally, I know it distracts me in harmful ways - my thoughts spiral out of control, envisioning worst-case scenarios and dredging up painful memories that are years past. The enemy is responsible for producing worry and anxiety - not God. He tell us not to worry about anything, but come to Him and pray about it - because He knows what’s going on anyway! He just wants a relationship with you. Like building a relationship with any other person, He wants you to come and talk to Him, and get to know Him - and trust that He’ll take care of you and everything you are dealing with.
Beloved friend, may I encourage you, the next time you are overwhelmed with fear of the unknown, to go to the One who knows it all.
Let’s pray together.Lord Jesus, thank You for being steadfast. Thank You for always being there for us. We know that You have infinite attention and infinite time for each and every one of us, and that You delight in us because we are Your children and You love us. Forgive us for the times we are afraid or overwhelmed by the unknown - we know we have no cause to be afraid, because You are mightier than 10,000 armies. If You are for us, God, who or what can possibly stand against us? But in those times, Lord - when we forget how powerful and mighty You are, in those times when we are afraid of unknown circumstances or futures, help us to remember to seek You. Help us to remember that what is unknown to us, is known to You - every detail of every moment of our lives is something You are intimately familiar with. Help us remember that we are not a burden to You but are invited to come to Your throne with boldness because of what Christ did for us. Thank You for Your supernatural peace, Lord, which goes beyond all we know and understand. Thank You for protecting us, sustaining us, and loving us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
