Servants on Mission

“We are the light of the world

We are the city on a hill

We are the light of the world

We gotta, we gotta, we gotta let the light shine

Let the light shine, let the light shine

We are called to the spread the news

Tell the world the simple truth

Jesus came to save, there's freedom in His Name

So let it all break through “

~ Kari Jobe “We Are”

You can be called to do mission work and we should go without hesitation.  If the Lord puts on your heart to pack your bags, to do His work, then it is your duty to go.   Everyone is called to do some type of mission work.  It could be a camp counselor for Radooga Camps, in Ukraine, serving in Africa or Israel, or teach ESL in Japan.  Even those Christians in the United States are capable of doing work of the Lord here.  Playing music in the campus-church band or working as a church intern for one of the local churches.  The Bible says:

"Declare his glory among the nations,

   his marvelous deeds among all peoples."

~1 Chronicles 16:24 (NIV)

We share the sin of the world with those we meet, but we are followers of Christ.  He has sent us to take up the heavy and important message that God is good and he is the Father, that never fails.  The Lord communicates the Word through us, his missional workers, across oceans through the continents, and over mountains.  God's mission for his people, is a commitment to go where he leads you.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[b] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

~Matthew 28:19-20

"Sing to the LORD a new song;

   sing to the LORD, all the earth.

Sing to the LORD, praise his name;

   proclaim his salvation day after day.

Declare his glory among the nations,

   his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;

   he is to be feared above all gods.

For all the gods of the nations are idols,

   but the LORD made the heavens.

Splendor and majesty are before him;

   strength and glory are in his sanctuary.

Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations,

   ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;

   bring an offering and come into his courts.

Worship the LORD in the splendor of his [a] holiness;

   tremble before him, all the earth.

Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns."

   The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;

   he will judge the peoples with equity.

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;

   let the sea resound, and all that is in it;

let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them.

   Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy;

they will sing before the LORD, for he comes,

   he comes to judge the earth.

   He will judge the world in righteousness

   and the peoples in his truth."

~ Psalms 96 (NIV)

A Christians work in the field, may entail some harsh conditions, some as horrible, you may think, "Why, would I do this"  That question is easy to answer.  You do it for the glory of the Lord.  Your work, how minute it may seem, plays a big part in the grand scheme of His plan.  Being totally surrendered to God means that if you are told by the Holy Spirit that He wants you to go away and complete His tasks, you should.  He asks many things of his children and this is no exception.

Mission work and its length of time varies from place to place.  As long as a few years, or 2 months or just a couple of weeks, it suits many Christians.  The places that are worked in can be some of the most gracious places on the Earth and others may be not so sanitary.  It is not the conditions that are important, but the lives that we touch.  It brings God praise to see His believers making a difference in the world around them.

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”

~Colossians 4:6

I believe that doing the work of the Lord is one of the most satisfactory things, a Christian believer can do.  He knowingly put the idea of missions on your heart.  Why; He knows that you have what it takes to do the work of the Creator, of the whole world.  He has the ability to be of creating and changing people for His plan.  That might even show you that there is more mission work that He wants of you.  It could mean forgoing a job in the United States for a while and dedicating yourself for His kingdom.

"Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness."

~Romans 66:13

Righteousness to the kingdom of the Lord, for the work to be accomplished through you.  A necessity to take the word of Lord to the end of the Earth.  God is faithful, in times where we are unsure.  He knows what you are do in accordance with the law of the land.  Travel to Jerusalem, Peru, or Seoul Korea. To preach the gospel and bring songs of grace and beauty, that is what the Lord commands.  Seek out the nations, and show them what has been given to you.  Missions is something all of Gods children to take part in.  The feeling of accomplishment, after its completion, should make your heart ache to do more.  Perhaps, the meaning that you have been trying to find, is sitting there in your hands.  The ability to change the world, has been with you for your whole life. Now "carpe diem" and run with God's mission.   

Passion and Purpose

What exactly does it mean to have Purpose.  The dictionary defines purpose as: "determination: the quality of being determined to do or achieve something."  God knew of the purpose for your life, before you ever existed.  How you are supposed to live your life and experience the glory that is God.  Everyone has a very specific purpose, something that is unique to them.  It shows off their talents and qualities, the ingredients for such a special person in the Lords eyes.  As we grow in our faith, God puts people in our lives that help steer is to the purpose in life that God has for his children.

"I am your Creator.

   You were in my care

   even before you were born."

~Isaiah 44:2 (CEV)

Our purpose for this life is to be a servant of God.  Such a weight should not exist, for the glory of God and His plan is not a laughing matter.  It is from your Holy Father, who know exactly what he is doing.  He made you to do great things, some of which have not been revealed to you.  On the Lords time, all things are shown, and have a specific activation point on the timeline of life.  We as Christians have been given a purpose.  Some of us may be called to teach, others IT specialists, or become a minister.  All these are from God, whom put that on your heart to make it blossom into something that you can be assured came from God.  We may have an idea of what our purpose in life is, but God is the controller of the universe and all things in it. 

The Christian way of living is challenged by non-believers.  We need to change the way we think, as well.  God asks us to pull toward the light.  The majesty that is God, knows that we have fallen astray from Him. What are that chances that he will never be there for us, not very likely.  He is always with us and will forgive us of our sins.  That is why he is the righteous One, the only God we are to worship and give praise to.  He has that special purpose, to lead is to the reward of spending eternity in Heaven, with Him.  The twelve disciple of Jesus, gave everything up to do the purpose for serving the Lord has His closet friends and confidants. 

"Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.  Then you will be able to know the will of God."

~Romans 12:2 (GNB)

God asks us to our purpose and live life to the fullest.  Bringing Him the glory of our works and the gladness that we receive as being children of God.  Ideally the purpose of God is to be a light for us.  Its need is to pull or push is the direction that is of the utmost importance to the Lord.  It could mean having to give up the things of the past and turning toward something that is unfamiliar to us.  Do not be in a rush to know what that is.  Particularly, the concept of growth.  It takes time for the things of God to take root and mature. 

"There is a time for everything,

       and a season for every activity under heaven:"

~Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NIV)

Time should be still when you know that God wants to speak to you.   You should hear nothing, but the dead of night, complete silence.  God knows that when he has prepared you for the race ahead, he will share with you what that is.  What we as Christians need to realize is that time does not exist, in the eyes of the Lord.  We use it as a measure of life, the passing of our growing bodies.  What God wants is the purpose to be the dominant source of your life.  Forget time, just focus on God and you will run the race that He has for you.  The idea of purpose produces a concept called passion.

Christians should have a passion that filters into the Christ-like attitudes that God wants from each and every one of his followers.  That call should be something you care deeply about.  Your purpose brings you motivation to run the race of life that is of the Lords construction.  Passion helps you do things, ideal to the kingdom of God.  I can also be a problem.  Purpose and passion are like twins.  Without one, the other becomes weak, and can cease to be seen.  Both are required to stay afloat.  Christ had passion to do the work of His father and be an ambassador to the people that he encountered during his life. 

What we have is a gift.  Something that needs consistent prayer and acknowledgement from the Father above.  Passion can only be seen by the purpose and purpose can only be known by God and the life that he wants us to bring, lead, and share that with those around us.  As a Christian believers, we need to have that of trust and love for the Lord, and be faithful in His promises.

A question I will answer next week:  "What does a “man” look/act/behave like to you? Based on your views of “manhood,” how do you stack up? Are you aspiring to be like the men in Titus 1:7-16 or Ephesians 5:22-33?"

Life of Faith

God’s call in our lives, is not an accident.  He wants to take that leap so that we may live a life of faith.

Being a Christian, we should hold ourselves to a high standard of living.  Not because we are superior to others, but for the reason that we have a connection with our Holy Father.   Living our lives for the Lord should not questionable.  We have one life to live and why not live it to the extreme.  Christ is the extreme, the force within us that tells is anything in God is possible.  Christ lived so that we could live in Him.  Living by faith in Christ, in such as way that marvels what He desires for each of us, to trust in Him.

"Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel"

~Philippians 1:27 NIV)

The gospel tells is that life lived in righteousness is far better than that of the world.  To remain in one spirit with God is where we all should be.  Living in Christ means that love and truth should be together.  Love of Christ and willing to be ridiculed for sharing the truth: gospel with our friends or family, even though they might not be believers.  They may shun you and tell you to go away.  God asks us to live for Christ.  He shared the gospel with many people, eventually being crucified for the truths that He shared.

"We live by faith, not by sight."

~2 Corinthians 5:6 (NIV)

Life by sight is to live deceived. Our eyes will cause us to see thing, not of value to God, but the Earth.  Those things you have longed for in your old life are dead and gone.  As a child of the Lord, brother or sister with Christ, we should learn from Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome.  The Bible tells of Paul as he stressed the importance of the "Christian deity", the connection with the Father.  "Only by being connected with Christ, can anyone have eternal life and only through a continuing connection with him can anyone have power for living.  Faith is that continuing connection.  Knowing that God is always with us and knows what is ahead, should provide us great comfort.

That special connection with Christ is the basis of living by the biblical standards.  Such things are valuable when we consider that by accepting Christ to be our personal Savior, we are brand-new.  Gone are the thing of impure thoughts and worldly things.  "Heaven should fill our thoughts" (Colossians 3:1-4)  

Live by faith as children of God. 

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you."

~Philippians 4:8, 9 ESV