"The Lord'll Provide"

As I drove along in the self-imposed solitude of the cargo van on the way to Dungannon (see You Have Got To Be Kidding Me) my emotions were running high.  I was alternately praying, crying and just flat out freaking out over what I had seen in the early hours of that Y2K mission trip.  My mind was racing, and I was making plans as to what I would say that first night in Dungannon when I would address the group.  Part of me wanted to just leave the issues alone and deal with them when we returned to Hinsdale.  After all, these students had come on this trip with expectations of what was allowed and what was not, and just because I found it offensive didn't mean I should change the rules in mid-stream.  Another part of me wanted to crack down hard and send home those who couldn't live by what I thought were reasonable expectations for behavior on a youth trip.  I felt like as their new Youth Pastor I needed to draw a line in the sand and let them know where I stood.  I prayed for wisdom and strength to do the right thing.

Somewhere along the road God blessed me with some wisdom.  I was singing to myself as the cargo van rattled down the highway when a song I hadn't thought of in years popped into my head.  The song was The Lord'll Provide (click here for a YouTube version).  It's a Mike Cross song about a Buzzard and a Chicken Hawk, who are discussing how hungry they are as they watch some chickens in a barnyard.  The Chicken Hawk wants to be aggressive and attack the chickens; the Buzzard says to be patient and the Lord will provide.  The Chicken Hawk waits until he thinks he can wait no more and attacks.  As soon as he does, the farmer comes out with his shotgun and blows the Chicken Hawk "to kingdom come."  The Buzzard watches patiently, looks first at the dead Chicken Hawk laying on the ground and then to the heavens.  He then says, "I knew the Lord would provide..."  As I reflected on the story, I knew God had just sent me an answer to my prayers.  I didn't need to force an opportunity to let the group know how I felt.  I didn't need to rant and rave about the actions that had offended me.  I just needed to wait- prayerfully- and God would provide the opportunity and the words.  The Lord would indeed provide.

We arrived in Dungannon on Saturday night, staying in a barracks-type building that had housed teams coming to the area for mission trips for many years.  Late that night we had a group meeting and devotions, and I shared with them my traditional "trip speech" about who we were and who we were there to represent- both Union Church and Jesus.  Without mentioning specific behavior, I reminded them that our actions would reflect not only on us, but on our church and our Savior as well.  We would be working closely with area families, and I closed by reminding my team of the oft-quoted cliche, "You may be the only Bible they ever read."  I had no idea if the kids had heard anything this new guy had said that night.  I would find out soon enough.  See you tomorrow with more of the story...

Because of Jesus,