Comfort and safety are overrated. I love the sheer challenge of an adventure. Being an outdoor adventure kind of guy, I don’t find myself admiring the mountains of Colorado because of their beauty. Instead, when I look at them I think about how long it would take me to reach the peak and then whether or not I could hang glide back to where I started.
My mom was convinced my two brothers and I would end up in a coma someday after one of our stunts. The first time she verbalized this was when she caught us snowboarding off the roof of our second story house, into a driving snowstorm 20 feet down, and eventually into a snow bank. No problem. What was she so upset about?
One day it dawned on me that my risk-taking lifestyle was mainly for my own thrill. I wondered if this spirit of adventure could be used to help people in need around the world.
So I became a missionary. And I became one in the Middle East.
On my first expedition to the region, I found myself in a refugee camp in Lebanon giving eyeglasses to those who have never owned a pair. It was pretty awesome. I kept thinking to myself, “Why am I here? I just blew it sharing my faith with a friend who is an artist. I mean she’s an artist, and they tend to believe anything! That was a layup and I completely missed the backboard. How in the world am I ever going to talk to someone from the Middle East? Especially a Muslim?”
On day one, an older gentleman walked into our clinic and, I have to admit, he freaked me out. He looked rough and had a scowl on his face.
But then something strange happened. I felt the Holy Spirit inaudibly tell me, “Give him a Bible.”I had a box of Bibles translated into Arabic next to me. I tried ignoring the scary guy and looked for someone who appeared a little friendlier. “These children look like they need a Bible,” I told God. The Holy Spirit prompted me again: “Give him a Bible.”
Fine.
As I walked over he looked directly at me, his eyes were filled with hate. My pulse quickened and I almost turned around, but it was too late—I was committed. When I got within earshot I said to him, “I have a gift for you.” He looked at me with disgust but as he read the title of the gift his expression changed. I was shocked—spiritually shocked—when I saw a smile come over his face and a tear roll down in his eye. Another tear followed. He grabbed me and gave me a hug that I will never forget. He looked at me and said “I’ve wanted one of these my entire life. Thank you!”
Twenty minutes later he was wearing his first pair of glasses reading his first Bible, and I learned a life lesson. Jesus loves these people. Why can’t I?
After that, I was hooked. I wanted to bring Jesus to people who had never heard of Him. I soon fell in love with Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and Egypt. The Bible sites were amazing, but going off the grid in the Middle East was better than repelling off a fourteener any day.
While some people toured Israel on a bus and stayed at 5-star hotels, I found myself backpacking 3 hours into the Negev Desert, hanging out with guys named Mohammad and Kareem, staying with a Bedouin tribe, and sleeping in a tent. The adventure was legit for sure, but the Bedouins needed Jesus, and that’s why I was there. So with my brother Tommy, we launched something we named Uncharted. Think REI on the mission field and you get the picture.
We decided to aim Uncharted where it was needed most. Few know that the world is currently experiencing the greatest humanitarian disaster since World War II. The Syrian War has destroyed a nation of over 20 million people. Half of the population of Syria has fled their homes. There are about 6 million refugees just in Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. On top of that, there are just as many displaced people desperately trying to get out of Syria.
So we went to work in Jordan and visited families that told us gut-wrenching stories. Most had lost family members. Many had been tortured. Some had lost their children to the commercial sex trade. All of them had shattered lives. And we wanted them to know that Jesus hadn’t forgotten them.
We went to a refugee camp on the Syrian border. While we distributed food, clothes, blankets, and played soccer with the kids. Less than a mile away, we could hear explosions every so often from the front lines of the war in this blood-soaked country.
In Syria, it’s the Sunni Muslims vs. the Alawites. The bad blood goes back centuries and unfortunately, the war doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. We heard stories of chemical weapon attacks and the evil seemed to have no boundaries.
Is peace nothing more than a cruel illusion in places like Syria?
Not when Jesus arrives.
This is the first of a two-part series written by Josh Doyle, member of e3 Partners and founder of Uncharted. Part two will be posted soon.
