3 Jul 2017

Short term missions are not the race

by | posted in: Missions | 194,735

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.

194735 Responses

  7. 의정부 치아교정
    | Reply

    It is the best time to make a few plans foor the future and it is ttime to
    be happy. I have learn this submit and iif I may just I want to
    counsel you some interesting issues or advice.
    Perhaps youu could write next articles relating to this article.
    I wish to read more issues about it!
    의정부 치아교정

  15. soustružení
    | Reply

    I’m not sure where you’re getting your information,
    but great topic. I needs to spend some time learning more or understanding more.
    Thanks for magnificent information I was looking for this info for my mission.

  24. check it out
    | Reply

    Hello this is somewhat of off topic but I was wondering if blogs
    use WYSIWYG editors or if you have to manually code with HTML.
    I’m starting a blog soon but have no coding experience so I wanted to get guidance from someone with experience.
    Any help would be greatly appreciated!

  27. (best phase to study shape of chromosome)
    | Reply

    Ɗefіnitely beⅼieve that which you stateɗ. Your favoгіte justіficatіon appeared to bе on the
    web the simplest thing to be aware of. I say to you, I
    defіnitelʏ get irked while people tһink abοut worries that they plainly don’t know
    about. You managed to hit the nail upon the top and also defined
    out the whole thing without having side effect , people could take a signal.
    Will probɑbly be back to get more. Tһanks

  29. نيك زابو
    | Reply

    What’s up all, here every person is sharing such familiarity, thus it’s nice to read this blog, and I used to pay a visit this
    weblog all the time.

  31. Dunbar High Schoolsays
    | Reply

    Greetings I am so glad I found your blog page, I really found you by error, while I was looking
    on Aol for something else, Nonetheless I am here now
    and would just like to say cheers for a marvelous post and a all round thrilling blog (I also love the theme/design), I
    don’t have time to read through it all at the minute but I have book-marked 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 awesome work.

  32. lung clear pro drops reviews
    | Reply

    I’m amazed, I have to admit. Seldom do I encounter a blog that’s
    both equally educative and entertaining, and let me tell you, you’ve hit the nail on the head.
    The issue is something too few folks are speaking intelligently
    about. I’m very happy I came across this in my hunt for something concerning this.

    Look at my web blog lung clear pro drops reviews

  33. Telegram网页版
    | Reply

    Telegram官网提供中文版本的Telegram下载。不仅有Telegram网页版、Telegram PC电脑桌面版,还有苹果手机和安卓应用版本可供选择。https://www.whathkapp.com，https://www.linawin.com，https://www.web-skypea.com

  34. Skype 網頁版
    | Reply

    现在Skype 網頁版提供免費通話、視訊、即時訊息和文件分享功能，讓您輕鬆保持聯繫，隨時隨地共享精彩世界。https://www.telegramppo.com，https://www.whathkapp.com，https://www.linawin.com

  44. Rekomendasi DJ Leony Ang
    | Reply

    Hi! I just wanted to ask if you ever have any problems with hackers?
    My last blog (wordpress) was hacked and I ended up losing a few months of hard
    work due to no back up. Do you have any solutions to stop
    hackers?

  45. LPOI8PUIJ8
    | Reply

    It’s amazing to pay a quick visit this site and reading
    the views of all mates on the topic of this post, while I am also keen of getting know-how.

  47. chinese ai
    | Reply

    hi!,I really like your writing very so much! percentage we
    keep up a correspondence more approximately your
    article on AOL? I require a specialist in this area to resolve my problem.
    May be that’s you! Having a look forward to peer you.

  50. lotus365
    | Reply

    Greetings! Very useful advice within this article!
    It’s the little changes that make the largest changes.
    Many thanks for sharing!

Leave a Reply

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