Before You GoSample

Water Into Wine and Gunk Into Water

An important part of your mental armor is accepting that there may very well be hardships on your trip. You should also go, however, with confidence that a great God has sent you—a miracle-working God—who promised to go with you.

I hosted a church-building team that had endured tremendous physical hardships but maintained a good attitude through sickness, the climate, and challenging work conditions. Water was in short supply for cement mixing, but community neighbors donated as much of their precious water as possible to the host pastor.

Nearing completion, the team had exhausted all the water sources except for a sewer-like, green, grungy cistern on an abandoned property. We had passed it regularly but avoided it like the plague all week. With reluctance, the host informed us that the only way to complete the project was to begin carrying buckets of that water to the work site.

Two members in charge of “the bucket brigade” knelt together and prayed: “Lord, we’ve been willing to do anything You asked of us and still are. You know we don’t want to get anywhere near that water, much less carry it or use it in the cement, but we will at Your word. Protect our team and us from sickness and bacteria as we do Your will, in Jesus’ name. Amen.”

To their shock, when they got to the stagnant cistern with their buckets, that same water which had been putrid only an hour earlier was as fresh as a mountain stream! No smell, no grunge, and no fear! They had experienced a miracle. What a celebration of praise we had as we completed the job!

When you need one, there’s a miracle there for you too.

Go Further: Define the word “impossible.” How does God see the word “impossible?” If you knew that this word brought a smile to God’s face, how would you think differently? What is it about the water brigade’s prayer that speaks to you?

Prayer: Lord, forgive me if I have made You too small in my sight. Thank You for going with us on this mission trip. You are a great God, and You do miracles. Thanks for meeting our needs, for the grace to endure hardship, and for rescuing us when we need a miracle. We love and trust You and are glad that we serve a Big God.