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.
Vimeo.com
10 Inspirational Graphics About Best 18 Wheeler
Accident Attorneys Vimeo.com
equipacion de alemania
camiseta seleccion Alemana 2022
Eric
Excellent blog post. I certainly love this site.
Stick with it!
apply visa online for brunei
Today, while I was at work, my sister stole my apple ipad and tested to see if it can survive a twenty
five foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My apple ipad
is now broken and she has 83 views. I know this is totally off topic but I had to
share it with someone!
programmer
10 Startups That Are Set To Revolutionize The Audi Replacement Key Industry For The Better programmer
부산 치아교정
This is my firat time pay a visit at here and i amm genuinely happy to read all at single place.
부산 치아교정
mesothelioma legal
Its History Of Mesothelioma Law mesothelioma legal
treadmill for home Use
Where Can You Find The Best Treadmill Information? treadmill for home Use
Kelvin
Nicely put, Regards.
Thomasnit
https://irongamers.ru/sale/
about
Thanks very interesting blog!
patio door Repair leeds
17 Signs That You Work With Leeds Window Repair patio door Repair leeds
window repair near me
You’ll Never Guess This Window Repair Near Me’s Secrets window repair near me
Cómo funcionaban los molinos de viento
Hi there colleagues, its fantastic paragraph about cultureand completely defined, keep it up all the time.
부산치과
Aw, this was an extremely good post. Taking the tije and actual effort tto ceate a top
notch article… but what can I say… I put things off a lot and never
seem to get nearly anything done.
부산치과
Gobrico No Key Door Lever
7 Things You Never Knew About Online Shopping Website In London Gobrico No Key Door Lever
Office Furniture Dubai
Spot on with this write-up, I truly believe that
this web site needs far more attention. I’ll probably be returning to
read through more, thanks for the info!
check this list
Howdy! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from
an established blog. Is it very difficult to set up your own blog?
I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty quick.
I’m thinking about creating my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you
have any ideas or suggestions? Appreciate it
apply visa online for mexico
Way cool! Some extremely valid points! I appreciate you penning this article plus the rest of the
website is really good.
nhacaiuytinrodeo
fantastic issues altogether, you simply gained a brand new reader.
What might you suggest about your put up that you just made a few days in the past?
Any certain?
Movies
Greetings from California! I’m bored to tears at work
so I decided to check out your blog on my iphone during lunch break.
I love the info you present here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home.
I’m amazed at how fast your blog loaded on my phone ..
I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyhow, excellent blog!
DEFRA exempt stoves
An Easy-To-Follow Guide To Stove Defra Approved DEFRA exempt stoves
wordpress professionals
Attractive section of content. I simply stumbled
upon your weblog and in accession capital to claim that I get in fact enjoyed account your blog posts.
Any way I will be subscribing to your augment and even I success you get admission to consistently
quickly.
scammer
I like the valuable information you provide in your articles.
I will bookmark your weblog and check again here regularly.
I’m quite sure I will learn lots of new stuff right here! Best of
luck for the next!
Puff Wow
whoah this blog is excellent i really like reading your posts.
Keep up the good work! You realize, a lot of persons are searching round for this info, you can aid them greatly.
Here is my web page – Puff Wow
mushroom chocolate bars
I am genuinely delighted to glance at this webpage posts which carries lots of
helpful information, thanks for providing these statistics.
부산 임플란트 치과
Hey I know this is off topic butt I was wondering if you knew of aany widgets I could add
to my blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates.
I’ve been lioking for a plug-inlike this for quite some time and waas hoping maybe you would
have some experience with something like this. Please let me know
if you run into anything. I ruly enjoy readin your blog and I look forward to your new updates.
부산 임플란트 치과
lottery defeated reviews
Thanks for your marvelous posting! I truly enjoyed reading it, you might be a great
author.I will be sure to bookmark your blog
and definitely will come back someday. I want
to encourage you to continue your great posts, have
a nice holiday weekend!
sugar defender
Your style is so unique compared to other folks I’ve read stuff from.
Many thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this site.
Replace audi Key
What Audi Key Should Be Your Next Big Obsession Replace audi Key
Prediki Syair Togel
Heya i am for the primary time here. I found this board and I in finding It really helpful &
it helped me out much. I hope to give something back and help others like you aided me.
Great Lakes
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 web
site, since I experienced to reload the website lots of times previous to I could get it to load correctly.
I had been wondering if your hosting is OK? Not that I am complaining,
but slow loading instances times will often affect your placement in google and can damage your quality score if ads and marketing
with Adwords. Anyway I’m adding this RSS to
my email and can look out for a lot more of your respective exciting content.
Make sure you update this again very soon.
bokep indonesia
Greetings from Ohio! I’m bored at work so I decided
to browse your website on my iphone during lunch break.
I love the info you provide here and can’t
wait to take a look when I get home. I’m shocked at how quick your
blog loaded on my cell phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just
3G .. Anyhow, great site!
Data HK
The other day, while I was at work, my sister stole my iPad and
tested to see if it can survive a 25 foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. My iPad is
now broken and she has 83 views. I know this is totally off topic but I had to share it with someone!
evisa application for egypt
Good post however I was wondering if you could write a litte more on this subject?
I’d be very grateful if you could elaborate a little bit more.
Thank you!
treadmills For Sale near me
The 10 Most Scariest Things About Treadmills For Sale Near
Me treadmills For Sale near me
idia-tech.com
Are You Tired Of Upvc Window Repairs? 10 Inspirational Sources To
Revive Your Passion upvc Repairs (idia-tech.com)
evisa application brazil
Hi there friends, its enormous article about teachingand completely explained, keep it up all the time.
tonic greens herpes
After exploring a few of the articles on your site, I truly appreciate your way of blogging.
I bookmarked it to my bookmark site list and will be checking back
soon. Please check out my website too and let me know
how you feel.
buy Anal toys
What Is The Secret Life Of Remote Control Anal
Sex Toy buy Anal toys
高雄油漆工程
You have made the point.
Software Key
I think everything wrote made a bunch of sense.
However, think about this, suppose you were to create a
killer headline? I am not saying your content is not solid,
but suppose you added a title that grabbed folk’s attention? I mean Short term missions are not the race – The Hus Report is a little boring.
You ought to glance at Yahoo’s front page and see how they write news titles to get viewers to open the links.
You might add a related video or a related pic or two to get readers excited about what
you’ve got to say. Just my opinion, it could bring your posts
a little bit more interesting.
TimsothyCeway
Hi, all is going well here and ofcourse every one is sharing facts, that’s really fine, keep up writing.
https://www.diplomanc-russia24.com/
jesse jane porn star videos
Fantastic write ups. Regards.
double glazed window near Me
Guide To Double Glazed Window Near Me: The Intermediate Guide Towards Double Glazed Window Near Me double glazed window near Me
dreame l30 vs L20
Ten Dreame L30 Ultra Review Myths You Should Never Share On Twitter dreame l30 vs L20
Dwayne
I love it when people come together and share opinions.
Great website, continue the good work!
tote bags
Many thanks. Good stuff.
How Much Do SEO Services Cost? - Pinoy SEO Services Philippines
Hmm is anyone else having problems with the pictures on this blog loading?
I’m trying to determine if its a problem on my end or if it’s the blog.
Any responses would be greatly appreciated.
my web site :: How Much Do SEO Services Cost? – Pinoy SEO Services Philippines
출장안마
You suggested this superbly.