Because first, Christ.

As we spent time both with our church family and our physical families this weekend, we were refreshed and encouraged to learn of how many people are supporting us as we prepare for this mission.

There are so many aspects of this mission that seem daunting from the obvious to the subtle. Obviously, financially, raising $3500 is a big deal. Obviously leaving our kids with our parents for so long will be trying for everyone involved. Obviously the arduous work and traveling into rugged and remote areas in Haiti without the infrastructure and safety nets that we are accustomed too in the US will be a stretch for us.

More subtly, we will be challenged to grow in ways that we can't forsee such as in faith, to overcome the inevitable shock and sorrow of seeing extreme poverty and poor nutrition first hand. We will need to be bold in our acts of compassion requiring sacrifice and moving well beyond our comfort zones. All for what? What drives the hundreds and thousands of people like us to accept challenges, forego comfort and endure risk? Is it for self-promotion, to impress friends or colleagues? Is it so that we have exotic photos to post on facebook or give us good stories to tell in our memoirs? Is it to leave behind a lasting legacy?

All these things are ultimately worthless. What drives us, if I may be bold enough to speak for my wife, is that first Christ loved us. First Christ sacrificed for us. First Christ lived among us, the spiritually impoverished who had little hope and were hungry for the sustenance only Jesus could provide even though we didn't know it at the time. He was rejected, castigated, hated, tortured, hung on a cross and He knew it would all take place. He was willing to endure these things because He loved even those who hated Him. That is our inspiration and our driving force.

I admit, this sounds ridiculous, or "religilous" and contrived. I know how it appears to the world when we (counting the thousands of other medical mission workers doing this often at even greater cost) say that we are doing this for something other than self-serving reasons, so I won't waste time explaining why that isn't the case for us, but I want to encourage others to ignore what people may say or think about them or their motives; to move beyond their comfort zones similarly just to experience it themselves. Only through experiencing something like this can we understand the common need not only to provide compassionate aid to those in need, but to do something that is totally and completely non-selfish with our time and resources.

Because first, Christ.