You Want Me To Do What ?

In 2004, my church announced plans for a mission trip to Northern Ireland for the following summer. The purpose of the trip was to present free concerts in a variety of public venues and witness to the people who came to hear the music. My wife, who is a gifted alto, very much felt led by God to sign up to go. But what about me? I would have about as much success performing open heart surgery as I would singing a piece of choral music. There was some talk of a need to photographically document the trip. But I was a nature photographer – still shooting film. And besides, the number of pictures I had taken of people was miniscule.

Flash back more than 1,900 years to Jerusalem. Philip was one of the seven original deacons in the church. (Acts 6:5) After the persecution of believers began in that area, Philip went to a city in Samaria. Crowds of folks came to hear Philip speak about the Good News. Large numbers of people came to believe and were baptized. (See Acts 8:5-17.)

In the midst of this successful evangelistic explosion, Philip felt God leading him to go . . . to a bigger church with televised services? Nope. God called Philip to go to a barren desert. And witness to a single individual. There is no indication in scripture that Philip responded to God’s call by asking, “You want me to do what?” In fact, the Bible says quite clearly and simply, “So, he started out . . .”
(Acts 8:27)

So, in 2005, I purchased my first digital camera, flew to Northern Ireland, and took hundreds of photographs. With people in them.