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A Lost Camera Leads to an Invitation
September 18 2007 / ShareHim in Kalimantan (Borneo), Jul. 13 - Jul. 28 '07 #201by Tim Osborn
Personal Testimony of Tim Osborn.
Indonesia, what an experience! The ShareHim trip to Borneo was my second experience at mission work. In Feburary 2004, I went with my pastor on a trip to India. I experienced many exciting things in India during that month, including getting lost on one of the weekends. However, while the Borneo trip was not as "exciting" in that sense, the total experience was more rewarding.
I would like to tell one story that comes to mind. This story involves a lady who wanted to come to the meetings but was kept busy all too often. However, God used my weakness, jet lag, and tiredness to help me reach out to her. It was one of the first days in the program. We had been preaching for 2-3 nights. I was excited to be in Borneo. In my excitement, one morning, I misplaced my camera. This was a digital camera that cost my parents a lot of money!
Naturally, I was worried. I thought to myself, "How easy is it to misplace a bulky camera like the one I own?" Because of this, I reported my loss to the front desk at the hotel where we were staying. I told them that I had lost my camera, not to worry it was probably in my room, but if they saw it, to please return it to me.
Well, they then reported my loss to the head of house keeping. This was exactly what I did not want! House keeping came up and helped my roommate clean the room, but to no avail. I told house keeping that it was not their fault, but that I had just misplaced it somewhere. The head housekeeper breathed a sigh of relief. I then had what some call a "God" moment. She stated that she too was a Christian. She wanted to come to the meetings but had been to busy. I encouraged her that even if she only went to one meeting she would still gain a blessing. She thanked me for inviting her to the meetings. You see, God used my weakness to strengthen another Christian. And I did find my camera right after the conversation with the house keeper. It was safe in my closet.
I would like to tell one story that comes to mind. This story involves a lady who wanted to come to the meetings but was kept busy all too often. However, God used my weakness, jet lag, and tiredness to help me reach out to her. It was one of the first days in the program. We had been preaching for 2-3 nights. I was excited to be in Borneo. In my excitement, one morning, I misplaced my camera. This was a digital camera that cost my parents a lot of money!
Naturally, I was worried. I thought to myself, "How easy is it to misplace a bulky camera like the one I own?" Because of this, I reported my loss to the front desk at the hotel where we were staying. I told them that I had lost my camera, not to worry it was probably in my room, but if they saw it, to please return it to me.
Well, they then reported my loss to the head of house keeping. This was exactly what I did not want! House keeping came up and helped my roommate clean the room, but to no avail. I told house keeping that it was not their fault, but that I had just misplaced it somewhere. The head housekeeper breathed a sigh of relief. I then had what some call a "God" moment. She stated that she too was a Christian. She wanted to come to the meetings but had been to busy. I encouraged her that even if she only went to one meeting she would still gain a blessing. She thanked me for inviting her to the meetings. You see, God used my weakness to strengthen another Christian. And I did find my camera right after the conversation with the house keeper. It was safe in my closet.