These past 8 months I have been on a journey in the Dominican Republic as a missionary student. I have been studying Spanish and Bible and working with a village preschool. I’m currently in the States for a couple more weeks before heading back for two more months. I want to share with you how missions doesn’t have to be so foreign.
As the Church, we are called to not only work on our relationships with God and within the church but also our relationships out in the world. We have to take God out of our churches and into the world. Even though God is everywhere, I think we often get caught up in the idea of God only being in church.
In Matthew 28 Jesus Himself said: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (18-20).”
Jesus was giving a command to His disciples here. By loving Jesus, we should want to make Him known everywhere. By living for Jesus, we should share our lives with others. While missions isn’t the goal, but a goal, of the church, worship and glorifying God is our ultimate goal.
“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. The Great Commission is first to “delight yourself in the Lord” (Ps. 37:4) and then to declare, “Let the nation be glad and sing for joy” (Ps. 76:4). In this way, God will be glorified from beginning to end”
). God gets the glory. It’s a daily reminder for us all. We cannot carry the glory on our own for we will be crushed be the weight of it. By worshipping God, we are giving Him the glory. Worship happens in our daily lives, in the mundane tasks. As Christians, we are constantly looked at by others. If we are so focused on worshipping our God we will automatically point others to Jesus.
So wherever you are right now, be all there (as missionary Jim Elliot once said). You are in this time and this place for a purpose, even if you do not know why right now, God knows. God needs people in every place, not just missionaries in a foreign country. Everyone needs Jesus, so we need to bring Him into every relationship we have, Christian and non-Christian. This does not mean go evangelize in every conversation you have, rather I am saying that we need to live our lives as Christ-like examples.
While saying that, we need to realize that cross-cultural ministry is SO important. We are called to go into all nations. If you are reading this and have a tug at your heart, or the “Holy Spirit tingles” as my friend calls them, listen to Him. God needs you to be a messenger of the Good News. He is calling you to carry the Gospel to the nations, to disciple the people, to baptize them, to teach them, to serve them, and to most importantly build loving relationships with them.
“For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!'”
Romans 10:13-15
Missions isn’t so foreign because God can use you in every place. Don’t know how? God will lead you. Don’t know what to say? God will give you wisdom. Don’t think it’s possible? Nothing’s impossible with God. Can’t do it? You can do all things. Afraid? God has not given us fear. Not able? God is able.
There are no excuses. Missions can be lived out right where you are, in every moment.
