Sunday, February 03, 2008
WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE WE DOING?
WOW! So we just finished this mission festival weekend. My team had a chance to go to different workshops and sessions. But there were some things that really struck me. Often we are unclear at what mission really is. Charles Price put it this way, "Missions is the WHOLE church taking the WHOLE gospel to the WHOLE world!" He went on to talk about how many people will never go to the 'ends of the earth,' but he gave a specific challenge: "WHAT is your connection to the ends of the earth?" You see, you can actually touch the ends of the earth without ever going there by your prayers of intercession. Watch and see how God will connect your prayers in your life.
Another thing that really shocked me was the story of Gracia Burnham. She is a missionary with New Tribes Mission and had been serving in the Philippines and had been taken hostage with her husband for over a year. She was talking about some lessons that she learned during that time. She had mentioned how she had always had a dream about taking the gospel to unreached people and never imagined herself becoming a speaker for conferences in North America. She told an interesting story.
One of the statistics that Gracia had heard was : for every unreached people group there are 6 evangelical/Bible teaching churches. She thought well, that's great! Then 5 churches need to get together and send out one couple and all the people groups should be reached in no time! But to her shock (and later to mine as well...), someone came up to her and said. "Gracia, I'm sorry but the ratio is not 1:6 it is actually 1:600!"
When I heard that, it blew my mind away. Just think. There are 600 evangelical churches for EVERY unreached people group out there!!!! WHY? This statistic MUST be changed for the sake of those who are lost without hope and without a Savior.
I admit. I've been going through a time where I haven't been praying enough for people around the world. I sometimes don't take advantage of those little conversations with strangers that I feel God has brought to me. I think that is why this statistic struck me so hard.
My excuse is often, "well, I don't have the proper gifting to be an evangelist...someone else can do it." But what God has been reminding me is that He made my mouth, He made my brain, He gave me the capacity to think and to speak. If He made that, is it not His? Can He not do with it as He wants? Is He not able to give me the words that I so desperately search for?
He is willing and able!
ARE WE?
Posted by Karina: Queen of Spuds @
6:41 PM
1 comments
Comments:
Hey Karina!
I really like the question "WHAT is your connection to the ends of the earth?" Whether I'm right or wrong, I tend to think of the Great Commission as something we need to think about collectively and individually (what are
we doing, and what am
I doing?
I was just writing about the GC too, you can read it
here if you like...
Thanks for the reminders! :)
# posted by
Jim :
6:25 AM
