I am always humbled and grateful to be able to share the hope of the Gospel in foreign fields through short-term mission trips. Unfortunately, I am often saddened and frustrated by the way many respond to these opportunities.
No Christian (regenerate, born-again believer and follower of Christ) can ignore or deny the Biblical mandate to reach our world with the Gospel. It begins from where we are, and to the ends of the earth. Any Christian (see above definition) also understands that not all believers are called in Christ to physically go to a foreign field, whether short-term or permanent. But all Christians (see above) are missional. All Christians (again...) know that global missions are born from local missions.
Fulfilling the mandate of Matthew 28:18-20, the Great Commission, is the responsibility of every true believer. Jesus promised to be with us every step of the way and "to the end of the age." We are "ambassadors for Christ", and God is graciously "making His appeal through us", and we plead with everyone, "on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God" (2 Cor. 5:20). Seriously, there is no way to know Christ, know His Word, and not know about these realities. All of Scripture echoes God's heart that His "saving way may be known on earth..." and His "saving power among all the nations". Why? So that every tribe, nation, and tongue would "praise...rejoice...be glad...sing for joy" in Him alone (Psalm 67).
Still, there are those who would both claim and appear to believe these truths, yet have an uninformed, presumed, biased, and many times, outright unbiblical view and understanding of missions.
I often hear things like, "Why would you go/send/etc. to another country when we have people in need right here in our country?" This is a legitimate and important question to ask. If we are not evangelizing our families, coworkers, and communities, and taking every opportunity to support local missions, then we have no right or credibility to go anywhere and do missions.
My response to this is always the same: "What are you specifically doing for those in need locally?" I would wager almost 80% of people answer by referencing some financial gift that they provide. As someone who understands the cost of ministry, and especially foreign missions, I praise God for those who give faithfully! They are those, who as William Carey said, "hold the rope" for those who go. Speaking of statistics, I would say there is a 100% chance that not all of those who claim to "give" actually do. Giving is essential. Those who have been transformed by the power of the Gospel understand that everything they have has come from God. It all belongs to Him.
We (Christians) all support missions. We are all missional. Even if we can't "go" beyond where God has us, we are still missional people. As Charles Spurgeon said, "Every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter." The goal is to share the heart of God and be missional, not just "do missions". We want to walk with Jesus, obey Him, and see His glory among the nations. In your prayers, financial support, physical support, and countless other ways, you are a missionary. It may only be a small team that sets foot on the field, but every church member and partner goes with them.
Another example of these types of responses to missions is something like, "Mission trips are just an excuse for people to travel the world or have a vacation." I wish I could tell you that I haven't heard this much, or that I haven't heard it lately. Unfortunately, neither of those is true. Any excuse against evangelism or missions is void by the authority of God's Word. That is the primary point. But here, in this space, please allow me the grace to be candid. All excuses astound me. All excuses break my heart. All excuses frustrate me. However, this particular excuse bewilders me. It's dumb.
I want to explain, but first I'll address the silky-soft elephant in the room. God formed me and knew me. He created me for certain things. I have never tried to trump my resume up with skills I don't really have or things I haven't really done. Shake my hand and you will know that I am a preacher. My hands have book ink, tears, and tremors; not calluses. I know this, and I have embraced it. To be clear, I am not afraid of work, and those closest to me will testify to it. I've had to work extremely hard physically and am aware of its woes. But I can tell you with confidence that mission work is some of the hardest work I've ever done.
It is physical work. It could be construction, climbing mountains, corralling hundreds of kids, or a host of other things. You spend your whole day walking house to house, engaging, ministering, and sharing the hope of the Gospel. Traveling is hard. Accommodations are a roll of the dice and the comforts of our First World Life are thousands of miles away. But in the end, the physical toil and minor discomforts don't matter because there is a supernatural work taking place.
It is spiritual work. Our team is already preparing spiritually. We work to prepare ourselves for the work ahead. Yes. I said what I said. There is and will be an assault by the enemy to deter, distract, and divide. It doesn't stop once the money is raised, the flights have landed, and we've arrived in Chiquimula. The spiritual work goes before us, and continues as we pray together, serve together, share together, and partner together to see God's will be done.
We will train and prepare ourselves to know the culture, know our context, and know how to share the Gospel at every opportunity. We will press into Christ and be ever dependent on His grace and help to do what only He can do. We simply submit to His sovereign purposes and know that "He who began a good work...is faithful to complete it" (Phil. 1:6).
It is a "work of faith and a labor of love." Those are the words that the Apostle Paul used to describe the ministry of the church at Thessalonica. They had received the Gospel "not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit" (1 Thes. 1:5). As the Gospel does, it transformed them and immediately they began to follow the commands of Christ, beginning with telling everyone the good news of Christ. Paul writes them commending their work of faith - that is, it only comes through faith, by faith in Christ, and is of faith- and their labor of love.
Their love for Christ, for the Gospel, and for others, provides us with one of my favorite pictures in the New Testament's record of the church. It's found in 1 Thessalonians 1:8. The Apostle Paul came to town doing what he did - sharing, teaching, and preaching the Gospel. As he gets closer and closer to the areas surrounding Thessalonica, he encountered something that is incredible. It's best you hear it from Paul himself: "For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything." In essence, they put Paul out of a job.
That work is accomplished with a lot of faith and a lot of labor. But love is the key. The "love of Christ compels us" (2 Cor. 5:14) and while "faith, hope, and love abide" in Him, "the greatest of these is love" (1 Cor.13:13). Jesus declared that the way we love one another would be the evidence of being His disciple (John 13). The very first fruit born of the Spirit of God in us is love (Gal. 5:16-26).
Now, about Guatemala.
- June 12-19, 2023
- Chiquimula Guatemala
- Serving with the Cope Family (Rickey, Amy, Macey, and Bodey)
- Facebook: @CopeFamilyMissions
- Community Dump Ministry
- Mountain Ministry
- Church Partnership
- Worship
- Teaching/Preaching
- Edifying
- Pastoral Ministry
- Encourage
- Support
- Partner
- 1,000's Other Details & Potential Opportunities
1) Pray:
Pray that souls are saved. Pray that our missionary partners encouraged and helped. Pray for a local pastor who needs help and encouragement. Pray for countless financial needs. Pray for the enemy to be bound. Pray that we do not get in the way. Pray that God will be glorified.
2) Support:
Go. If you can't go, give. If you can't give, pray. Encourage and build up team members. Help spread the word and get others involved in praying and partnering. Learn about the trip, the people, and how to pray specifically. Find a team member and ask how you can support them. Follow the Cope Family on Facebook and learn more. If the Lord leads, support their ministry or our upcoming efforts on the field.
3) Respond:
If you read this and you are a believer, we should all ask ourselves questions like: "How am I responding to God's heart, His word, and His command to share the Gospel? To evangelize and be missional? Am I being obedient to His word in my support?" If not, how do you respond now? My prayer is that we all respond rightly. However, wherever, we will respond.
Comments
Post a Comment