Preparing for the Trip

Getting ready for a trip takes preparation. The amount of preparation depends on how long you will be gone and how far away you are going. 
 
There's the preparation in regard to packing.  What to take and, even more importantly with today's TSA guidelines, what not to take.  There's the things you almost forget because you can run to the corner store at any given moment and pick them up (like ibuprofen) or they are always right at hand (like toothpaste). 
 
There's the preparation to be able to travel.  Getting the plane tickets, making sure you have your passport.  Shots!  What about insurance?  Does my phone work where we are going? 
 
And there's the preparation to extract yourself from your daily life.  At work you make sure things are being taken care of during your absence and you’ve let people know you’re going to be out of pocket.  At home you make sure your pets will be fed and plants will be watered, you might need to take care of mail and paper pickup, etc..  (In my case I probably should have fixed frozen dishes the family could heat while I am away.)
 
But for this trip, there is also the keenly important preparation of ourselves for what God is wanting to do.  Taking the time to position yourself for whatever God has in mind for the trip. 
 
World Vision did a fantastic job coaching us on best ways to prepare in all of these areas.  Okay maybe not so much on the daily life front but that's not really their role.  However in each of the other areas, they did a fantastic job.  (Thank you World Vision!)   In regard to packing, they provided a list of things to take.  In regard to travel logistics, they gave us information on what we needed and where to go to learn what decisions to make.  In regard to spiritual preparation, our team leader encouraged us to meditate on how Christ emptied himself and to consider doing the same (read more about this in my Traveling Buddy Andrew's blog).
 
The point I want to make is this:  In the hustle and bustle of preparing to leave, the most important preparation we can do is the one that requires us to "be still and know".   
 
But that’s not just for this trip.  We are committed - for the long haul - to a big vision of seeing our Jerusalems, Judeas, Samarias, even the ends of the world impacted by the good news of Christ. In this particular situation, we are asking God to unveil His heart in regard to the connection between global work and local work. Are we prepared for this trip? Are we being still in order to know?

The amount of preparation depends on how long you will be gone and how far away you are going. We're going for eternity, from here to the ends of the earth. Big trip.