3 Jul 2017

Short term missions are not the race

by | posted in: Missions | 149,482

I am always amazed at the excitement and nervousness from those going on their first short-term mission trip, most of the time they don’t know enough to know what they need to be nervous about. There is an excitement in their eyes as they head into the unknown. They prepare testimonies and lessons, not knowing how God will use them or if they will be effective. They pack what is recommended and wonder if it will be enough. They comfort their parents and loved ones, and try to reassure them everything is going to be alright, while at the same time not knowing what the future holds. But through leading and prayer, the journey begins.

 

A lot of mission team members, especially those who have never been on mission before usually become broken spiritually sometime during the week of the trip. They discover a new outlook on sharing, faith, trust, and God. Why is this? It is simple, during the week they are constantly hearing the word of God either from others sharing or through the preaching or their own study. They also see the word of God come to life. That doesn’t mean that the bible gets up and starts walking around. But they see the Spirit of God begin to work in the lives of the people they come in contact with. They walk the streets with a single purpose, to find the person of peace with whom they can share the good news of the gospel. Some are hit with the hard truth that not all will accept the gospel, so they plant a seed not knowing the condition of the soil. Other times they begin to pour out water onto unknown soil, unaware that a seed exist and has been waiting for the moisture that God will use to bring it to life. They get excited and don’t know what to do when out of the ground springs forth life. A miracle, they get to see cold dead bones come to life. After that experience, they have a drive to share and no longer need to be pushed in front of people to share with. Oh what it would have been like in Acts to walk the streets and see God work, bringing people to life through the proclamation of the Gospel. But wait, could that still happen? And could it happen here?

After returning home and a couple weeks of rest, life returns to normal. The mission was accomplished, people were saved and now we are back comfortable, safe, fed, and loved. Or are we? There is always a sense of completion at the end of a mission trip. Not that that would be wrong in the short term, but there is a since of that was where we were on mission at, but now we are back and we have things to get done. Real stuff, school, work, friends, problems, and you know life. Right?

One of the greatest tragedies we have is short-term missions. I know you saw a bunch of people get saved, and God really “showed up”, but stay with me. There is a since of awe and wonder during the week of a mission trip. And we look forward to the next year when we can go and feel that same since of awe and wonder. But let’s compare it to a race shall we. Anyone who runs foot races understands that you have different splits. These are markers throughout the race to gauge your progress, and to ensure you are on pace. A short-term mission trip is sort of like a split. It is a time to see if you are where you need to be in your spiritual life, in your reading and study of the word, apologetics, doctrines, and if you can articulate them to the world around you. The shortness of the week gives you the opportunity to push yourself hard and to evaluate yourself. The tragedy is that the short-term is looked at, as the race itself. We return with a sense that we ran and will rest up to run again next year.

The race however is not over. In fact it is just beginning. When you return home, it is like passing the first mile marker. The street is no longer filled with cheering fans, the road narrows, and the reality of the race sets in. Here is where we must work our hardest. This is where we must pull from prayer and scripture, the strength to press on. Where most might sit and rest, we must run to win. We don’t just return to normal life, we return with a renewed sense of awe for what God has been doing and we must now trust even more so that He will continue His work. We saw on foreign soil God work in others lives. Now we must trust that He will work in ours for His glory and to reach those around us. We are home; this is where we must turn from our sins, where we must love God more than mother and father, more than friends and things. This is where we live out what we preach, if we believe that which we have taught. Did we believe it? Do we believe it? If so, then are we disciplined for the miles ahead? Paul tells the church at Corinth “I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified”. Are we disqualified or are we still in the race?

There are no short-term missionaries; there are only missionaries in different context. When we return to our Jerusalem, let us seek the hope that is only found in Christ. Let us not lean on our own understanding, our own wisdom, which is foolishness. Let us not fall victim to busyness and the lure of shiny objects that promise fulfillment. Let our knees be worn out for those nearest to us. Let our time be determined by the cross and His call, trusting that He will provide the time for work, family, fun, and ministry, as we continue the race. We have found our greatest joy in walking by faith; let us not check our faith with Homeland Security as we return home. But let us be reminded daily where our ultimate security is found and where our joy is greatest. Wherever you woke up at, wherever you find yourself, wherever you stand today, then that is your mission field. Time to get running.

149482 Responses

  3. สมัครคาสิโน191
    | Reply

    Have you ever considered creating an e-book or guest authoring on other websites?
    I have a blog based on the same subjects you discuss and would love to have you share some stories/information. I know my readers would enjoy your work.
    If you are even remotely interested, feel free to shoot me an email.

  7. film bokep
    | Reply

    Excellent blog! Do you have any recommendations for aspiring writers?
    I’m hoping to start my own website soon but I’m a little lost on everything.
    Would you propose starting with a free platform like WordPress or
    go for a paid option? There are so many choices out there that I’m completely confused ..

    Any ideas? Cheers!

  15. โบนัสคาสิโนออนไลน์
    | Reply

    ส่วย ประเภท ยี่กีเป็น ประเภท การ ทำ หวย ซึ่ง
    ได้รับความ ความรู้สึกชื่นชอบ อย่างมากใน ภูมิภาค ไทย ซึ่งมี คล้ายคลึงกับ
    กับ การพนัน ลอตเตอรี่ทั่วไป แต่มี ความแตกต่างจาก ในด้าน การเลือกมา ตัวเลขที่ และ กระบวนการ ในการ ส่ังซื้อ
    จำหน่าย

    การ ทดลองเล่น หวยยี่กีนั้น ผู้ ซื้อ จะเลือก เลขเด็ด
    จำนวน 2-3 ตัวเลข ซึ่งอาจ
    เป็น หมายเลข ที่มี ความหมายเฉพาะ
    หรือ เลขชุด ที่ เป็น ใน ความเชื่อ
    ของแต่ละ จากนั้น เอา
    เลขชุด เหล่านั้นไปซื้อ ที่ ร้านค้า จำหน่ายหวย
    ยี่กี ซึ่งมัก จะเป็น ร้านขาย ปลีก ทุกแห่ง ในชุมชน

    สาเหตุที่ ทำให้ การเดิมพัน ยี่กี ได้รับการยอมรับ มาก ก็คือ
    ผลตอบแทน การ ทำรางวัล ในการจ่ายรางวัล ซึ่งมัก จะ สูงขึ้นกว่า
    หวย รัฐบาล โดย อย่างยิ่ง เมื่อ หมายเลขที่ ถูก
    เป็น ตัวเลข ซึ่ง ไม่ค่อยจะ
    ใน การพนัน รัฐบาล ซึ่งก็ ก็ทำให้
    ผู้ พนัน ได้รับ ผล รางวัล อันที่ มากยิ่งขึ้น หากเลข ที่ เลือกสรร ถูกมา

    อย่างไรก็ตาม การ
    ใช้ หวย ยี่กีนั้นก็ ประกอบไปด้วย
    ความเสี่ยงมาก มากเกินไป เนื่องจาก ลักษณะของ การ ลงทุน อันที่ อาศัย บุญกรรม อย่างเป็นหลัก
    ซึ่ง หรืออาจ ทำให้ผู้ พนัน เสียเงินไป เงินทอง ถ้า
    ไม่ได้รับรางวัล รางวัล ดังนั้น จึงควร ใช้
    ตามแนว ความ ใส่ใจ

    ในภาพรวม การเดิมพัน ยี่กีถือเป็น กิจกรรมการเดิมพัน ที่ ได้รับการยอมรับ อย่าง เป็นอย่างมาก ใน ภูมิภาค ไทย แม้ว่าจะ ประกอบด้วย ความเสี่ยง สูง แต่ก็ยังมี ที่ แสดง ความ ความสนใจเป็นอย่างมาก และเล่น
    การพนัน ยี่กีอย่าง เป็นประจำ
    ทั้ง เพื่อที่จะให้
    มุ่งหวัง ผล รางวัลตอบแทน
    อันที่ มากกว่า และเพื่อ พยายามแสวงหา ความ ความต้องการความตื่นเต้น
    จากการเล่น

    Look at my web page … โบนัสคาสิโนออนไลน์

  20. 홈페이지 제작 업체
    | Reply

    Have you ever thought about adding a little
    bit more than just your articles? I mean, what yyou say is fundamental and everything.
    Nevertheless imagine if you added some great visuals or
    viudeos to give yourr posts more, “pop”! Your content iss excellent but with piocs and
    video clips, this website could definitely be one of the verfy best iin its niche.

    Wonderful blog!
    홈페이지 제작 업체

  21. iptv argentina
    | Reply

    hey there and thank you for your info – I have certainly picked up anything new from right here.
    I did however expertise some technical points using this website, as I experienced to reload the web site
    a lot of times previous to I could get it to load properly.
    I had been wondering if your web hosting is OK?
    Not that I am complaining, but sluggish loading instances times will sometimes affect your
    placement in google and could damage your quality score
    if ads and marketing with Adwords. Well I am adding this RSS to my e-mail and can look
    out for a lot more of your respective interesting content.
    Make sure you update this again very soon.

  24. korea eta application
    | Reply

    I have been exploring for a bit for any high-quality articles or
    blog posts on this sort of area . Exploring in Yahoo I finally stumbled
    upon this web site. Studying this info So i’m glad to exhibit that
    I have an incredibly just right uncanny feeling I discovered just what I needed.
    I so much unquestionably will make sure to don?t overlook
    this web site and give it a glance regularly.

  26. Hr Consultants Northern Ireland
    | Reply

    Hello, Neat post. There’s a problem along with your web site
    in web explorer, would test this? IE nonetheless is the market chief
    and a huge section of folks will omit your excellent writing because of this problem.

  34. Additional Info
    | Reply

    naturally like your web-site but you need to take a
    look at the spelling on several of your posts.
    A number of them are rife with spelling problems and I
    in finding it very bothersome to inform the truth nevertheless I’ll definitely come
    back again.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *