Partnership

Before departing for the mission field, we attended orientation with One Collective, the organization sending us to Quito as field workers. The leaders prayed over us, that, “we would see everyone through the eyes of Jesus.” We would add to that prayer: that we would see the eyes of Jesus in everyone. 

As many of you know, I (Caroline) lived in Quito for nearly a year and connected local churches with short-term teams, what you may know as “mission trips.” I essentially served as a shepherd for the visiting teams, translating, providing cultural context, and caring for their well-being while they were in the field with us. 

One of these teams, a group from Sewanee, was tasked with moving dirt from the site for a new church building to level the ground. In assembly line fashion, we carried all the dirt we could manage in buckets to a location down the street. 

As I lost count of the number of buckets I had carried, my mind and my eyes began to wander. I caught a glimpse of two, large, curious brown eyes in the corner of a wrought iron window. I smiled through the dust-streaked glass. Upon discovery, the bashful eyes quickly disappeared. I almost thought I had imagined them, but briefly, I saw the eyes of Jesus staring back at me.

By the time I turned around with my next load, little David and a crew of three friends had shown up behind me. They had watched us carry bucket after bucket down the street, and now, after one simple moment of connection, they wanted to carry buckets, too. 

We divvied up one full bucket of dirt among four buckets for the little ones, and they each carried their charge down the road. I watched David waddle down the road in his Superman T-shirt, a pullup sticking up out of his jeans, with so much determination on his face his tongue stuck out the corner of his mouth. On and on this went - take a full bucket, divide it among four, give them to the kids to carry.

Eventually, I caught myself thinking that, while he was so sweet to help, it would be faster without him...

"Woah. Pause." I thought immediately afterwards. Yes, it would technically be faster without Superman and his friends, but how important is that?

I learned this lesson from my Ecuadorian brothers and sisters over and over again. People are more important than work projects. The most efficient way is not always the best way. See everyone through the eyes of Jesus, and Jesus in the eyes of everyone.

God is powerful. He can accomplish whatever he wants to. Yet, he gives us the opportunity to help out. He invites us in, provides us with the tools and the time, and waits for us to accept the challenge. He uses us, and while it's not as efficient as if he were to build on his own, it knits us together in community as we work side by side.

God is already working in Quito. He doesn’t need us, or the short-term teams we will work with, to further his kingdom. But, the more people that pick up a bucket, the more lives have the opportunity to be transformed. The vision of One Collective is to see, “lives and communities transformed by the power of God.”

 The success of a short-term team is based in relationship and defined by transformation. If each member of a short-term team bears fruit from their experience during ten days in Quito, then not only are they transformed, but so are their families, their friends, their communities at home. Not only is the new church site transformed, but so are David and his friends, their families, maybe their whole street. One short-term team has the potential to impact hundreds of people.

So, we would like to invite you to metaphorically pick up a bucket. We invite you to waddle down the road alongside us. Alongside One Collective, our future short-term teams, our Ecuadorian partner churches, and of course, my friend Superman. 

God fills each of our buckets differently. Some of us are given resources, some are given time, and in our case, we have been given a desire and call to move to Quito and pursue this work.

The difference though, is that while God may not need us, we absolutely need you. We truly cannot do this without you. We ask that you pray for us. We also ask that you consider joining us financially. We invite you walk alongside us with your bucket, as together we see through the eyes of Jesus, and see the eyes of Jesus in everyone.