|
A Potential Scheme for Finishing the Great Commission
When your heart beats with God's passion for those who've never
had a chance to hear, you have to do something, you can't wait around
for someone to give you a call. God already did that when He said,
"Go into all the world and make disciples of every nation!"
But how is it going to happen? We've got at few minor problems.
Not enough money. Not enough people excited to go. Those excited
don't have a lot of experience.
God's got a plan.
Remember Paul? Greatest missionary since Jesus. Turned Europe upside
down on a shoestring budget.
Or should I say a tent string?
Tent-Maker - Paul made tents while he preached the Gospel.
You can use your career to keep bread on the table but see your
primary vocation as sharing Jesus and starting a church.
Teams - Paul made tents with Aquilla and Priscilla. Together
they planted the church. You can team up with others to share the
load and demonstrate Christ's body to the people you're trying to
reach.
For the Unreached - Paul determined to go where no one had
ever gone before. You can move as a team to a place where there's
a significant number of people who haven't had a chance to hear,
whether in the USA or abroad.
How Might It Look?
Let's say God puts the Vietnamese of Stockton, California on your
heart. You pray for a team and eventually two singles, a couple
and a senior citizen commit. Each member of the team rallies his
or her church to be prayer support. You individually research methods
to witness to Buddhists and you meet together to share your findings.
You all start learning Vietnamese while driving to work, calling
to hold each other accountable and practice.
Then you and the team members secure jobs in Stockton according
to your careers, trying to find work in areas with a high concentration
of Vietnamese. You look for housing in fairly close proximity to
each other or share living quarters. The senior citizen on your
team volunteers at a social service focused on new Vietnamese immigrants.
You enjoy frequenting a Vietnamese-run donut shop (mission work
is tough)!
Your team worships and prays together on Sabbath and during the
week, getting to know each other more, sharing deeply and becoming
the body of Christ. Sometimes personalities clash, but that's all
part of learning to forgive and grow.
In time, friendships are formed with many Vietnamese and witnessing
occurs.
The team then partners with an English-speaking church to provide
an English as a Second Language course . It happens on Saturday
nights with popcorn and games thrown in. You hold a Vietnamese cultural
day in the church parking lot and call upon local talent for the
program and food. Eventually people come to Christ and a small company
of Vietnamese Christians forms.
The team sees a need for a full-time Vietnamese pastor and pools
its resources in partnership with the local conference to hire one.
More ministry. More growth.
A returned student missionary spends her summer with the group
working closely with the teenage Vietnamese, helping them get out
of gangs and into college. She learns more about the poverty of
Vietnam and the illiteracy and decides to prepare for a career with
Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA).
One of your team members (might be you!) feels called to start
a Vietnamese group in Paris, France. Two members of the Vietnamese
company choose to join.The English-speaking church and the Vietnamese
company partner to send these three missionaries.
Because they know you so well, they are great at providing financial,
prayer and moral support. Others catch this exciting vision.
God's Kingdom Arrives!
|
