Weir in PNG

I believe that in order to understand any one's motivation for doing anything, you have to understand that person's world-view. My world-view is the framework by which all my life is experienced and understood, thereby giving me purpose and meaning. So let's begin here, at my reason for everything, my reason for living.

Let me be clear: I believe in Jesus Christ of the Bible. My whole existence is based in the person of Jesus. You may think this foolish, because "how can you believe the claims that he made?" Or, "he was only a man, and the bible is just a book." Or, "how can you prove that God even exists?" All of these are valid questions and there are a thousand more like them. The answer lies with faith. Many arguments can be made to support my beliefs. I can present historical evidence, empirical evidence, philosophical, moral, spiritual, and ethical evidence of my beliefs, but it is not enough. The sticking point is faith.

Heb. 11-1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." So let us dispense with all the apologetics (the defense of the christian belief system) for now, and move forward into the meat of it.

Because I believe that Christ is who he said he is ("I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me"), I must respond to the person of Jesus. I admit, Jesus made some claims that are troubling to the mind. Let's look at the above quote and put in some different emphasis to illustrate my point. "I am THE way, THE truth and THE life." He's claiming a monopoly on all those things. He's saying that everyone and everything else that is offering you hope for the future, is wrong. But he's not just claiming a monopoly on stuff, he's saying that he is Truth, that he is Life. To make that kind of statement, you are either a liar, a lunatic, or you are the Lord. So once again, I choose to step out in faith and accept him as Lord.

Now that we are past the heady spiritual stuff, you can start asking the "real-life" questions: "Why do you have to take your beliefs to the other side of the world? What about your friends and family, don't you care about them? Why give up so much?" Many of you have posed similar questions and all of them reflect your care for us and concern for our well-being, and for that we thank you. In my mind, the greatest reason for doing anything at all is to meet a need. I believe in the work that The Organization is doing all over the world, but they need help. I have a skill set that fits a need that they now have. I am willing and able, and I choose to give of myself to further a cause that I believe in. In that sense, it's no different than philanthropy, or environmental activism, or working in a soup kitchen. The glaring difference is this: I do what I do because Christ chose to pursue me. I am acting in response to a gift that has been given to me, not because I think this whole "Christianity thing" is a super self-help product that will change the world. All I know is that my relationship with the person of Jesus Christ has changed me.

That's it. That's the reason.

We are risking health, safety, financial security, and relationships to do this. We have no assurances on any of that, but still we choose to go. All of your doubts and worries are true and valid concerns. I will do my best to allay those fears with good information and complete documentation of our efforts. We welcome your questions at all times. It will help guide our choice of topics as we update the blog!

Caleb