The Call

I want to be a translator. The kind of translator that you can trust to convey the essence of your message in a way that people will understand. The kind of translator who follows your movements and even your pitches. The kind of translator who puts her heart into the message and preaches with passion and power. Yes, I want to be that kind of translator.

The parallel struck me one evening on the way to my site. I had been working with my new translator for several days. Things were going extremely well, and I was praying that they would continue to go so well. I discovered that what made for a good translator wasn’t experience or talent. It wasn’t a dynamic personality or a background in ministry. No, I found that the best translators need only possess three traits: willingness, humility, and love for those to whom the message is being preached. The best translators are like the writing in the best works of literature: transparent. They don’t distract from the message; they convey it clearly, effectively, and powerfully. The less they are noticed, the better the translator.

And as I pondered this, I felt God whisper, “Heidi, I want you to be my translator. I need you to be transparent. Less of you; more of me. I need you to be willing; to go wherever I go, to follow me as closely as you want your translator to follow you, to step out of your comfort zone and take great risks for me. I need you to be humble; to take hold of my message and leave your agendas behind, to relinquish control and admit that everything you have comes from me, to surrender your will and live to do mine. And I need you to give me your heart so that I can give you mine, so that my love can flow through you, so that when I send you to seek my lost children, they will see my heart, my love. And they will follow me.”

Oh, God, I want to be your translator. The kind that you can trust to convey your message in a way that those around me will understand. The kind that will follow you in every detail. The kind that puts my heart – your heart – into the message, and lives with passion for seeking your children. Yes, God, I want to be your translator.