Investments That Count

This week Susan and I made an investment. Well, at least according to Guillermo, the salesman, it was. I have noticed almost all good sales representatives think their particular product will be an investment of one type or another. My guess is that is what made Billy Mays such an iconic figure. He thought everything from "Mighty Putty" to, my personal favorite, "Big City Sliders"* would be a valuable investment for each of us.

Our particular investment was a bed. Yes, after eleven years of my feet hanging off the end of a rather traditionally-sized Costa Rican bed, we purchased a queen-sized mattress and box spring. According to Guillermo, a bed is an investment because you are going to spend a third of your life in it. Obviously Guillermo doesn't know our normal schedule or how much I travel!

According to the a dictionary I consulted, investing refers to the act of laying out money or capital in an enterprise with the expectation of profit. I am not sure how much profit I am going to make out of this bed, but I have been enjoying the sensation of having my feet stay under the covers all night.

Investing is also "the commitment of something other than money (time, energy or effort) to a project with the expectation of some worthwhile result." That describes a lot of mission's effort. There is not a great deal of money to invest, but missionaries invest time and energy to see God's work done in sometimes difficult places.

It was my privilege to spend last week in Cochabamba and Santa Cruz, Bolivia. It was a joy to see the results of our missionaries' faithful investments. David Quiroga and his team (which includes our daughter Norma and her family) have been working hard to see the Centro de Amistad grow into a ministry deeply impacting the children and youth of a very poor neighborhood. In addition, they have planted a church that is now beginning to grow. It was a privilege to see the young Christians worship and share together when I spoke there last Sunday. David now leads a team that includes, Australians, fellow Bolivians, Canadians along with a few from the USA.

Spending time with Mike and Bonnie Timmer is always a good investment. While this past year has presented them with several serious challenges, they continue to move ahead with building, staffing and supporting a number of smaller children's homes in Bolivia.

River Claure and his wife have worked for years to create and develop a ministry to youth leaders in Bolivia. In just over a week between 150 and 250 youth workers from around the country will arrive for a conference just outside of Cochabamba. Now, this is a REAL investment in next-generation leaders.

Down in Santa Cruz we are beginning to change around some of our investments. Jimmy Bollinger is going to begin a team modeling discipleship to university students. We are never sure how our investments will pay out, but this one looks like it has a lot of potential. Of course, the investment that IT missionaries, Ken Switzer and Marcee Groen have made in the lives of street children in Santa Cruz has already paid off. Some of the former street kids are now in university and continue to grow in their faith.

All in all, I think these IT ministries are going to be better investments than our new mattress - certainly better than "Big City Sliders!"

*"Big City Sliders" is actually a type of frying pan which enables you to make "White Castle" hamburgers in your own home... I am not sure if this would be seen as an investment or biological warfare.