When our senior pastor, George Moore, announced an adult mission trip to Germany last year, I think I was the first person to sign up, followed closely by my sister, Jana. We felt we were supposed to go -- it was a call of sorts. I had studied German for five years in junior and senior high and for two years at the university, but that was 20 years ago. I went with an extraordinary group of people from my church. They had cumulative years of mission trips, small group experience, Bible study, work for the church and relational ministry among them. I was not even a member, but felt like I was supposed to go.
It wasn't until we were actually in Germany that I realized why I was there. Over the course of our twice-monthly meetings, our pastor filled our heads with talk of postmodernism, the Confessing Church, the Barmen Confession and a history of the church in Germany. We also talked about our church being a mission church: living a relational lifestyle and giving an incarnational witness. I understood for the first time how "Love one another as I have loved you!" (John 13:34) and "It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me!" (Gal. 2:20) were the two verses I could hold dose and say, "Yes! We will live these two verses out in front of the people we visit!"
Horses and Handicaps
Whoa! It only took about two days of visiting the Karlshöhe to realize that I had it backwards. The deacons, the translators, the staff of this incredible institution were giving this witness to me! As I watched J-- and B-- work with the horses and mentally handicapped people, bringing them together as a team, I saw the face of Jesus.
As we sat at table with Eberhard and his family, music filling the air and eight mentally handicapped adults all trying to tell us something at the same time (in German!), the love of Jesus for all of us was there in that room. With music and laughter, we all understood each other!
Jesus was in the faces of Uschi and Jochen at the Haus auf der Wart working with the homeless, drug addicts, alcoholics and victims of domestic abuse. He was at the workshops we visited in Ludwigsburg where every one of the handicapped people was treated with dignity and love.
Dr. Brandt, the director of the Karlshöhe, shared the words of a German pastor saying, "Faith (Glaube) belongs to me like love (Liebe)." I had seen people living out their faith in the love they gave freely everyday. I was overwhelmed and ready to come home and tell everyone all about it!
Hospitality
We left Karlshöhe and went on to Öhringen to live with our host families and spend the week with some wonderful pastors who did their best to keep us to their orderly German schedule. Jesus was everywhere in Öhringen as well. He was in the music and ministry of the Presbyterians visiting from Cameroon. He was in the constant attention paid to our physical needs. He was in the enthusiasm of the youth workers who are bringing the word of God to German young people. Jesus was in Herr Braun at Brettheim, who is working to keep alive a tragic story from World War II so that it is not forgotten. And especially, Jesus was there in the middle of the host families.
I also found Jesus in the group I went with. Each was ready with a quick smile, a hearty laugh, arms for hugging, bandaids for mending, voices for singing and hearts for sharing Jesus with me. I told our pastor that the reason I would be joining our church this fall was that he had given me a new prescription for my glasses: how I looked at Christian community! This group and this trip helped me understand that I was seeing clearly for the first time! We are to live out our faith in the love we share: Glaube and Liebe. They belong together and cannot be separated.
Julie Prescott lives in Omaha, Nebraska and is now a member of West Hills Presbyterian Church.