November 7, 2000

Tuesday, November 7, 2000, was a day that changed my life – and it all started with a casual conversation in the college cafeteria.

While in the food line in the cafeteria, I initiated a dialogue with Dr. Branson Roberts, who was the campus coordinator of the Romanian Studies Program. All I did was ask when he would be in his office so I could talk to him about the possibility of going to Romania in the summer. He then proceeded to tell me that it would be a much better experience if I went for a semester, and urged me to go in the spring. I laughed to myself at the absurdity of going for the spring semester. I had obligations on campus, at church, and was even signed up already for spring classes. I already had plans for the spring semester, and those plans did not involve going to Romania!

Tuesday, November 7, 2000, was also right in the middle of a 5-day revival series co-sponsored by Eastern Nazarene College and the Wollaston Church of the Nazarene. In addition to Sunday morning and evening church services, special college chapel services every morning and special church services each evening allowed for 10 revival services in this condensed period. The speaker was my pastor from my home church, Pastor Bud Reedy.

During that Tuesday evening service, my pastor preached a message that God used to speak directly to me. The part of the message that I will always remember is that sometimes we make plans and have expectations for the future which are not what God has in mind. The illustration Pastor Bud used was that when we have these expectations, we need to (figuratively) take a shovel, go out in the back yard, dig a hole, bury them, have a funeral and mourn over them, give them to God, and then allow Him to resurrect what He would.

The message so profoundly impacted me that I spent over an hour in the small campus prayer chapel identifying each of the plans and expectations I had made for the future and giving each one to God. They weren’t necessarily bad plans. It’s just that God had much better plans in store. There in that prayer chapel, I began to feel God’s peace about going to Romania for the spring (and the summer!) of 2001. Over the next few days, I was overwhelmed by various modes of confirmation that God was indeed drawing me to Romania. At the time, I thought it was just for 6 months in 2001. Never in my wildest imagination would I have dreamed that I would be in Romania 10 years later.

During these 10 years, God has done in, through, and for me immeasurable more than (exceedingly abundantly above) all that I could have ever asked or imagined. To Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.

Photo: Angell Chapel at Eastern Nazarene College. The 3 stained-glass windows represent Faith, Hope, and Love. This is the prayer chapel where I gave God all my expectations and plans for the future.