So, a little backstory. About 20-ish years ago, God brought an incredible worship leader to our little church on the dusty plains of Kansas. We were grateful for his service to us for a little over 10 years. He lead us with new arrangements of traditional hymns, contemporary praise and worship songs, and some beautiful original pieces – some of which became my very favorite Easter and Christmas songs.
As God does, He worked out His plan in the life of our church, and the life of each of us individually, including Ken. During his time with us, his heart for missions grew until the call was so loud, he had to answer. So, he left us to use his gifts and his heart to “help ignite Biblically appropriate and culturally relevant heart worship, especially in places where Christ-followers are restricted, persecuted or unknown.”
Anyway, he spends a lot of time overseas, and while at home, he’s at the family farm about a four hour drive away. It’s been years since we’ve seen him, but stay in touch on facebook, etc. He and his wife were in town visiting their kids and grandkids, and while here, threw out a notice on fb that he’s doing piano tuning – so, of course, I booked him!
It was such a joy to see him, I gave him a big hug, then had to hug him again! Fast forward a few hours, and he was playing for my husband and me, and we were all singing and laughing and shedding some tears due to the bond, the love, and the memories we share. We found out he and his wife are headed back out again in March, and in the conversation, I asked him how much the flight is, and he shared that he was so grateful for a friend who is a pilot, so they get ‘buddy passes’ for a ridiculously low price. (Having flown to Kauai last year, it seemed low to me – they were going twice as far for half what we spent – but still a good amount.)
While Bryan was continuing the conversation, I was writing the check for the tuning, and when I handed it to him, he thanked me for it, then I handed him another one –covering the flight to overseas in March. I loved it! I loved the look on his face and the out-loud laugh, but I mostly loved the smile on my face and the feeling in my heart. I was blessed with some extra funds, and I am so pleased to be able to use that blessing to bless our friend. All are not called to the mission field, but we are all called to pray, and in this case, I was so happy to be able to help send!
I’m grateful to be in the flow of giving and receiving – in this case helping indigenous people groups record and share their worship music for the first time. It’s all connected. We’re all connected. There are wonderful people all over the world, and knowing them enriches us all. 🙂