Written by: Brian Schenk

Ever since early spring the C2C Nicaragua has been a part of my life. At first it was just an opportunity to get involved in a great bike tour. The thought of raising money to help the people of coastal Nicaragua was a really good idea too!! I’ve known Mark Vanderwees since 1986 and I was thrilled to even be invited to not only participate but also spend time with a good friend that I really respect and admire for his lifestyle choices. And so I began in earnest the planning for C2C Nicaragua.

As I began to consider and busy myself with this task, God started to shape His ideas too. I know He was at it from the get go but I didn’t start seeing it until I took a group of kids from my home church Bethlehem CRC here in Thunder Bay to a SERVE project at the end of June. The theme of the project – Right the Wrong. The project challenged us to look at social justice issues in light of Scriptures. Words from Micah 6:8 spoke the most to me “What does the Lord require of you Oh man, to act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God”. Although these words were not the keynote for the week, they kept coming back to me and I couldn’t let them go. We saw so many opportunities to do these “Micah things” all week long as we worked in the hot sun in Port Perry, Ont. The speaker who led the evening talks kept coming back to the theme and challenging us as individuals – What can YOU do to right the wrong. What choices can YOU make that will right the wrong? How do YOU go into each day as regards those who suffer in a Third World country? How is God shaping YOU to Right the Wrong?

At the evening talks the kids were challenged in many ways – 2 stand out for me. We were each given a Toonie to do with as we liked. They were anonymously donated by a member of the local church. As I picked mine up out of the bag I immediately knew that I had my first 2 dollar donation for Nicaragua. The second challenge was to come to the foot of a cross that had been set up at the front of the church. Buried in sand at the base of the cross were smooth stones. The challenge, pick up a stone and let that stone represent something you’re holding onto that you need to let go of – something that you need to pray for God to help you release. Something that is hindering you from accepting the challenge to Right the Wrong. For some reason I picked up 2 stones. When you felt that God had worked in your heart to let those things go you could throw the stones away. I’m still carrying mine.

I’ve got A&P in my pocket. No, it’s not part of the grocery chain! It’s also not anatomy and physiology, something I relate to in my everyday work as a paramedic. It’s the Atlantic and Pacific. My stones bear the letters A and P. I wrote it on them in magic marker this week and I now have an answer for why I picked up 2 of them. There’s a lot of stuff I’m holding onto. I want to have my way in too many things. I see it in my relationships with my wife and children. I love them but I’m too insistent on things going my way. I can see it’s blocking my ability to love them fully and I’ve got to let go. There are personal goals that “I” want that block my eyes from seeing The Prize. There are “things” that I want that hinder me from seeing that others have needs that are far more important – like food and water and a roof over their heads. I’m still carrying these stones because I can’t let go!! I’m still convinced I can do it my way. I’m more secure in my ability than I am in God’s providence. I know I haven’t prayed enough about it and that’s got to change too.

I’m going to throw those stones in the Atlantic as we start the C2C and in the Pacific as we end it. In between I’ll be praying that God softens my heart. I’ll be hoping to find His face in the faces of those I will be blessed to share a simple meal with. I know that spending time with other believers will be a shaping experience – these kinds of missions always are. I’m hoping that as I spend time in the saddle and as the kilometers roll by God will be shaping me for greater things. In some sense I’ll be throwing those stones away knowing that at some point I’ll pick up other ones. My prayer is that it will be easier for me to more quickly throw them away knowing that I need to stop carrying a weight that Jesus already carried away for me.

I can hardly wait to get to the Sea!!

Ciao, Brian