For some time now I keep saying I am going to start a blog. Well, now seems like a really good time to stop saying and start doing. A little forewarning.... I am no English major so please excuse any incorrect grammar, punctuation, etc.
As most of you probably know by now, David & I are going on a mission trip to Zambia this summer. Yes, we are leaving our children for 7-10 days. This decision did not come easily (especially for me). I for one questioned God more times than I count and He has been so patient with me and given me confirmation after confirmation that this was what He wanted us to do.
First of all I never felt called to get involved in mission work before. I always considered myself to be a sender. I would be more than happy to help people financially and prayerfully go but I for one did not want to leave my comforts (even for just a week) to go myself. All of that changed when our pastor preached a sermon titled "Go Global."
Pastor Mike really opened my eyes to the global view of the church. One fact he gave that was astounding to me was that of the 7.1 billion people in the world, 4.4 billion (that's over half by the way) of those are considered to be unreached. In other words... they have never even heard the name Jesus Christ. WOW! I was shocked! Being sheltered in the Bible belt where crosses and churches are literally every where you look, this fact seemed unreal. Something else he said that stuck out in my mind was that we were created to know God and make Him known. This is the purpose of our lives as children of God.
I had to ask myself, "How was I fulfilling my purpose?" I had this overwhelming feeling that I needed to be a goer for once. I needed to see the global mission for myself. I needed my eyes to be opened and to be exposed to the world outside of the Tri-Cities. I needed to quit letting my comforts rule my life instead of God.
At the end of the service 3 families from our church were brought onto the stage. They were 3 families that God had called to be full-time goers (aka missionaries). I looked at those families and my first thought was....They are just ordinary people like me. God took a hold of my heart and shook it. It took everything in me to not just sit in my seat and sob. I didn't want to cry because I knew if I did it would be one of those really ugly cries. I was ashamed at the lost souls that I had not even given a second thought to. I looked at my life and wondered what in the world had I been doing with it that would make a difference for the Kingdom of God.
After the service I thought maybe I had just gotten caught up in my feelings but my first confirmation came before I even got home from church. David and I began talking about the service and what we were feeling. David explained to me his feelings and how he has never felt God move him in such a way ever before. He described to me the exact emotions & thoughts I was having. I was shocked, amazed, and scared all at the same time.
The second confirmation that we needed to get involved in missions in some way happened a week or 2 later (I should have written this stuff down so I would have a better timeline). I didn't know it at the time but David had been praying that God would put one of those missionaries in our path. Well, we walked into Sunday school class and there sat one of the couples. A week or so later we invited them over to our house and we got to hear about what they were going to be doing, where they were moving, and how they felt called. They really inspired me to dive into the Bible and from that night on a passion grew in me to study God's word like never before (Thank You TJ & Meredith Overbeek). I prayed for God to give me an understanding of the Bible and to make me yearn to know more. I can confirm....that prayer was answered!
So what was our next step? Where do we go from here? What exactly does all this mean? I will return to write more and tell you of more of God's confirmations and another calling on our lives that has been in the works for about 6 years now.
Until then I leave you with this.... "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations...." Matthew 28:19. Where is it God is calling you to go? Maybe its just to your neighbors house or to a relative in another state. If you truly believe that Jesus could return at any moment and that He is the ONLY WAY to God and an eternity in Heaven.... Why aren't we out on mission for him no matter where we are? I ask myself that question everyday partly to keep it in the forefront of my mind and to remind myself that people are perishing all around me and what am I going to do about it? All children of God are missionaries! Some are called to cross into a different country and culture and some are not. But all believers are called to spread the good news no matter where that may take place.
"When you confess that Jesus is the Lord of the universe you sign up for significance beyond your dreams." John Piper
To view the sermon "Go Global" go to www.tcbchurch.org and click on messages. It was a message that was apart of the Church Defined series.
