Should I Do Missions? (Part 1)
December 3, 2009
For those of us who have been journeying with Christ for any amount of time, that question has probably come into our minds at one point or another. Maybe it was shortly after you started walking closely with Jesus. Or maybe you even had the opportunity to go on a mission trip with your high school that was one of the best times of your life. The point is, most of us Christ-followers have questioned whether or future should include missions or not at some point.
The answer to that question is an absolute yes. In Mark 16:15 Jesus says to his disciples, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” And after giving them the Holy Spirit, Jesus says to His disciples, “you will be my witnesses in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) From these verses and others, we can easily know that, as disciples of Christ, we are to be involved in international and cross-cultural missions.
But to what extent should we be involved? That’s probably where most of us have wrestled with this question. There are four different ways that I can think of that each of us can be involved.
1.) Pray – As brothers and sisters in Christ make the commitment to become full-time missionaries, there will be an infinite need to lift them and the people they minister to up in prayer.
2.) Give – The majority of the time, missionaries are going to have financial needs to move overseas and make ministry their full-time occupation.
3.) Disciple – There are several men and women in the church right now who need discipleship from others in the body as they prepare to make the commitment to international missions.
4.) Go – Obviously, the most significant commitment that one can make in regards to missions is to go and serve the purpose of the Gospel in another country.
Each of these ways provides us an opportunity to be involved in something we know for certain that Jesus has called us to. The “Go” aspect of missions is something I want to explore further in a Part 2, but if you aren’t involved in any of these ways, then I would encourage you to find a way that you can be.
December 4, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Hey Ryan, thanks for the post. Nice thoughts, I’m really looking forward to Part Dos.
Quick thought regarding point #2, Giving. In your post you designate giving for overseas missionaries, who have decidely dedicated their entire way of life to telling their chosen people group about Jesus. Yes, we should obviously support them and give to them. However, what are your thoughts on supporting people who decide to dedicate their entire lives to serving people and telling them about Jesus full time where they currently are?
What strikes me after reading your post is that we always call full time missionaries living and telling people about Jesus where they currently are, pastors. They aren’t missionaries working in a “foreign” field. They’re just pastors. What if someone wanted to dedicate their entire life to telling people about Jesus where they currently are, and this involved quitting their jobs and possibly leaving their homes. What would you call these people, and should we support them, give to them as well?
It seems so easy to give money to a missionary moving overseas, and I think the church finds it pretty easy, as well. How much should we dedicate to those who choose to serve full time right where they currently are? Would we be considered crazy if we asked the church for money to be missionaries in Indianapolis? My initial thought is yes, we would be called crazy.
What does it look like to be a full-time missionary in Indy? Would the church support it?
It seems like we are told to, “Keep your job, and live regularly, and when the time comes (if it ever comes) tell people around you about Jesus.” Well, what if we decided we wanted to become full-time missionaries, spending every day telling people about Jesus, dedicating our everything to coming up with ways to help others in his name and serve them out of his love, undistracted by job or money responsibilities.
Your post caused me to think this way so I hope you’re happy! haha Can’t wait for part 2.
December 17, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Parke, funny question kind of.
I actually have a close friend doing exactly what you’re talking about here on the southside of Indianapolis.
I think the only challenge I would have to that though is that there are many workers already here in Indianapolis. Not that there aren’t people who are not being reached adequately, but if two fields need to be harvested and one has 100 people working in it and the other has 5, which (9 times out of 10) needs more of our attention?
December 17, 2009 at 6:55 pm
[...] 17, 2009 In my most recent blog post, I touched lightly on the subject of missions and if we should be involved. The short answer to [...]