"Aren't you worried it's dangerous?"
I can't tell you how many time I have received this question. From friends, family, pastors, professors, strangers, the mail man. Everybody. Time and time again, I tell people my post-grad plans, and they look at me as if I just said I want to try skydiving without a parachute. People were incapable of comprehending why someone straight out of college could consciously make the decision to move to an “unsafe” part of the world. I tried to explain to people my "why," but to many, it just didn't make sense.
To be honest, it didn't completely make sense to me either. Here I am, making the decision to leave the safety of the United States, for the uncertainty of the Middle East, and I couldn't fully explain why. However, at the same time, I know that I am called. I know that I am called to go to a place where few desire to be, and to love those who few are willing to love. I was stuck right in the middle of this predicament, and I didn’t know how to answer people.
That is, I didn’t know how to answer that question until a few days ago. Until one of my teammates said exactly what I needed to hear:
“I would rather be in the will of God in an unsafe place, than out of the will of God in a safe place.”
There are moments in life where truth hits you like a train. This was one of those for me. It was an answer to prayer, and finally a way to answer the question that so many people have asked me.
So, “aren’t you worried it’s dangerous?”
Well, of course. I think I would be naive if I didn’t realize that there was at least some level of risk. But that’s not the most important question. The most important question is “am I willing to be obedient to God?” Right now, I believe I can say “yes” to that question. My hope and prayer is that I will be able to say “yes” to this question, not just for the next few years, but for the rest of my life. I know it will not always be easy, but following a God who calls us to difficult places often isn’t. However, just because it is difficult, does not mean that it is not worth the sacrifice. The cross was difficult for Jesus, yet he decided we were worth the sacrifice.