3 Jul 2017

Short term missions are not the race

by | posted in: Missions | 159,355

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.

159355 Responses

  10. Java Burn
    | Reply

    Greetings I am so thrilled I found your weblog, I
    really found you by mistake, while I was searching on Bing for something else,
    Anyhow I am here now and would just like to
    say thanks for a fantastic post and a all round interesting blog (I also love the theme/design), I don’t have
    time to read it all at the moment but I have bookmarked it and also included your RSS
    feeds, so when I have time I will be back to read a great deal more,
    Please do keep up the great b.

  11. scam
    | Reply

    I’m really impressed with your writing skills and also with the layout on your weblog.

    Is this a paid theme or did you modify it yourself?
    Either way keep up the excellent quality writing, it is rare to see a great
    blog like this one these days.

  13. Dacia
    | Reply

    Do you have a spam problem on this website; I also am a blogger, and
    I was curious about your situation; many of us have developed some nice methods and we are looking to trade solutions
    with other folks, be sure to shoot me an email if interested.

  14. Milo
    | Reply

    I seriously love your site.. Very nice colors & theme.
    Did you make this site yourself? Please reply back as I’m hoping to create my own website and
    want to find out where you got this from or just what the theme is called.
    Cheers!

  22. demo sugar rush 1000
    | Reply

    Yesterday, while I was at work, my sister stole my apple ipad and tested to see if
    it can survive a thirty foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation.
    My apple ipad is now destroyed and she has 83 views.
    I know this is totally off topic but I had to share it with
    someone!

  26. スピンローンチ 株価
    | Reply

    The exact applying country-specific minimum MTO is recalculated and set by the European Commission for each country every third year, and might be set at levels stricter than the greatest latitude permitted by the treaty.

  28. Josie Simmons
    | Reply

    wonderful service provided by Christian and Craig. from the estimate to the final product of our new home, they were responsive, very helpful in decision making, and professional throughout the whole process office renovation

  29. Cecilia
    | Reply

    Wonderful blog! I found it while browsing on Yahoo News.
    Do you have any tips on how to get listed in Yahoo News? I’ve been trying for a while but I never seem
    to get there! Appreciate it

  30. LeanBiome
    | Reply

    I’m extremely impressed together with your writing talents as smartly as with the layout
    to your blog. Is this a paid theme or did you modify it
    your self? Anyway keep up the nice quality writing,
    it is rare to look a great blog like this one today..

  37. TradeVistaX 4.7 GPT Ai
    | Reply

    Howdy! I understand this is somewhat off-topic but I needed to
    ask. Does operating a well-established blog such as yours require a lot of work?
    I am brand new to blogging but I do write in my journal daily.
    I’d like to start a blog so I will be able to share my personal
    experience and thoughts online. Please let me know if you have
    any kind of ideas or tips for brand new aspiring bloggers.
    Thankyou!

  41. Mellisa
    | Reply

    Hello, i think that i saw you visited my weblog thus i came to “return the favor”.I’m attempting
    to find things to improve my site!I suppose its ok to use a few of your ideas!!

  42. localmarketingagents
    | Reply

    I really like your blog.. very nice colors & theme. Did you create this website yourself
    or did you hire someone to do it for you? Plz reply as I’m looking to create my
    own blog and would like to find out where u got this from.

    appreciate it

  46. Sol
    | Reply

    It’s an amazing paragraph in favor of all the
    online visitors; they will take benefit from it I am sure.

  49. Kerstin
    | Reply

    My programmer is trying to convince me to move to .net from PHP.
    I have always disliked the idea because of the expenses.
    But he’s tryiong none the less. I’ve been using
    Movable-type on a variety of websites for about a year and am nervous about switching to another platform.
    I have heard good things about blogengine.net. Is there a way I can transfer all
    my wordpress content into it? Any kind of help would be really appreciated!

  50. Lisa
    | Reply

    I blog often and I really thank you for your information. This great article
    has really peaked my interest. I’m going to bookmark your
    website and keep checking for new information about once per week.
    I opted in for your Feed as well.

Leave a Reply

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