Ukraizy For Doing That!

Today I'll be embarking on another journey back to Ukraine.  I've packed my bags (well... almost finished...), have my travel plans arranged, raised financial support for a good portion of my time living there, and am ready to get to work.  I'll be flying out of JFK in New York City at 7:05pm (Follow along here! flightstats link) and will be arriving in Kiev at about 11am local time (4am EST).

Zaporozhye Region highlighted in Red

I've had the opportunity to reconnect with dozens of people who have supported me in the past, and I've been blessed to meet dozens more, who are now interested in impacting the lives of orphans in Ukraine and other parts of the world.

During this time of preparation, I've heard many people tell me that what I'm doing is extraordinary, or unbelievable, or something else along those lines.

But I believe that all I am doing is responding to the calling that I have at this stage in my life.

The idea of having a calling is a tricky concept to get our mind around.  It is an idea that is ingrained in us, but we often have difficulty finding a way to respond to this sneaking suspicion that we are meant for something.

Our passion is to know that we are fulfilling the purpose for which we are here on earth.  All other standards for success––wealth, power, position, knowledge, friendships––grow tinny and hollow if we do not satisfy this deeper longing.  ––Os Guinness, The Call


When you have a sense of calling, it becomes easier to take that leap of faith, because your spirit is free, as if a huge weight has been lifted off of you.  You are empowered in a way that is difficult to describe.

Calling does not always mean going to the other side of the earth.  One's calling might be within walking distance of one's home or work,  in one's place of work, or the work one is doing presently.  I don't consider myself to be anything special or extraordinary, because what I'm doing right now is what I'm supposed to be doing.

Each of us can find at least part of our calling every day by doing what we are supposed to do.  Doing the right and moral thing.  Praying for those around us, giving to those in need, offering counsel to the lost, repenting of our offenses, and offering forgiveness to those that have offended us.

These are things that people would surprisingly say are extraordinary things to do.  But they shouldn't be seen that way.  We all have the ability, even in a small way to do this.  And when you do it, you feel like Charlie from Willy Wonka (the original, not the acid trip one with Johnny Depp), once he's got that golden ticket.  He doesn't even really understand what he's won, but he just runs with it, and he is full of joy.

I think that Grandpa also hits it right on the head in this scene below.  I know the whole thing of him being bedridden for years and years and then suddenly to be singing and dancing is pretty unbelievable, but there is some kind of analogy to be taken from that health and freedom which he's found from them gaining this "golden ticket" in their lives.

I never had a chance to shine, Never a happy song to sing, But suddenly half the world is mine, What an amazing thing. ––Grandpa from Willy Wonka, I've Got a Golden Ticket


Live into your calling each day.  Find that joy, find that freedom, find your "golden ticket."