Good Morning everyone, I would like to talk a little about short-term mission trips and how important they are not to the people you serve but to the spiritual growth of yourself as well. Short-term mission trips are a week or two give or take. If you have never started with a short-term mission trip or if you are kind of waiting, well don’t wait plan through prayer and preparation. You will not regret it.
The mission trips I have been on have been an eye opening experience. Initially from the outside looking in you think mission trips go and they basically build things, give out stuff, or do some tangible thing to help people of other countries to just make their life’s a little better and you do it in the name of Jesus Christ. However, if you dive a little deeper and participate in a truly amazing event and get engaged you will see that it is so, so much more. First lets say that short term mission trips will let you discover just what God wants you to do in your life and it is real simple but so deep and amazing. You ask what is it… first it is to evangelize, mistakenly many feel that evangelizing is a spiritual gift but no way because we can see here in Matthew 28, Jesus had a command he left for all of us…
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in 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: 18-20
So as Christians what do we need to do? Simply it means stepping out of our churches and reaching the hurting, poor, rich, dying, lost people of the world. It isnot thephysical and it is paled in comparison to the personal relationship in Christ that He desires with us.Taking part in a mission trip I was able to help in a physical need but importantly most of all you become that vessel to plant the seed of Christ in the hearts of others, no matter where it is.
Realization
On my first mission trip I went with a great group of men. We were from different churches in Virginia and North Carolina. We spent time in Guatemala serving the needs of the Guatemalan people. Importantly we witnessed to those we came in contact with. One of the astounding realizations was that although the people were living in very cramped conditions with very minimal resources they still smiled. They welcomed us with open arms and although the language barrier required a translator we soon found common ground. The common ground I speak of is that we all are sinners (Romans 3:23). See, no matter where you live you are a creation of God. You are loved by Christ and need forgiveness of sins in order to be with Him. Within the area we worked by repairing, painting, and building, we were always on the look out for the Holy Spirit to place someone in our path that we could tell the Good News too. We were able through Christ alone to reach many, whether it was the interpreters, guards, residents, and children. The important part is that the word of God never returns void. If we were able just to speak with someone and they did not receive Christ, the word was still given.
Let me add that the term mission trips can often be mistakenly defined by the world as just a feel good, humanitarian effort of worldly value only. However, mission trips with a kingdom perspective is beyond the fathoms of secular society. As followers of Christ you must add in the Great Commission because that it the main focus otherwise the worldly value can consume the direction. So we must add in the term evangelism.
Evangelism to me is reaching others with the truth of the Gospel. Recently I have found in some of my studies a concept definition of servant evangelism. It is mostly what I have in mind as what full circle evangelism looks like. It also could be a close reference to missions.
Servant-hood evangelism is a combination of simple acts of kindness and intentional personal evangelism. The concept is as old as the New Testament. Like many profound truths, this one is so simple it is easily missed: Get a group of believers, say for instance at a local church or a group of students, and begin practicing simple acts of kindness with an intentional aim toward evangelism. In many cases, such acts of kindness open the door for the greatest act of kindness a Christian can give: the gospel.
Much of evangelism is based upon the reaching the lost with the Good News of Christ. Also going a bit further is providing for the physical needs of the people. I would reference how Jesus fed the 5000 with the story of loaves and fishes in Matthew 14.
Defining evangelism means basically reaching the lost with the truth of Jesus. It kind of stops there with no future follow up but mainly it involves teaching and preaching the Gospel. I think servant evangelism goes the furthest by definition. Now of course evangelism is necessary and required by Christians with the words of the Great Commission. I would also extend that Charles Spurgeon and even David Platt have added that if you do not feel the overwhelming desire to save the lost by telling them who Jesus is then, you should question your own salvation. With that said, we can see in the Bible that evangelism thus is not a spiritual gift. Now some people may be extraverts and good lecturers, but introverts can be a light in the darkness too. Introverts can become extroverts through God (Just look at Moses). Evangelism is not be a tedious task or a requirement, but it should be the happiness of loving people the greatest you can through speaking / doing the Gospel.
Wheeler shared a very good point on why many do not try to evangelize:
Over all, the main excuse for not sharing is a fear of rejection and a false belief that without experience and knowledge the witness cannot be effective. Nothing could be further from the truth. Consider the approach that Christ used with His disciples in Matt 10:16–20 (NKJV):
“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.
So for you that attend church regularly but desire more and are not comfortable within the boundaries of the four church walls. Let me add a closing story about what the opportunity of missions verses the inward comforting thoughts of a lulled routine in the American southern fried Christian perspective:
How many of you remember going to a Bible youth camp for a week in the summer from your church? Do you recall spending the whole week worshipping Jesus and being around friends, jumping up and down with excitement while singing praises to God. You had that awesome time and just wanted it to never end. Do you remember thinking what it must be like in heaven comparatively? Well the week came to an end and you headed home. The mountain top experience you had energized you and others with the thought of “We are going back to the church and tell the people all around the community, school and everywhere about the love of Christ”. To start you were bound and determined on Sunday morning to tell the people at church how much Jesus loved them and how great it was to be saved. So you show up Sunday morning the church with the normal routine of Sunday school and preaching. All the youth who had went to camp made a plan, Sunday morning we were going to go to the outside of the church. As people walked in you reach out to people with hugs and tell them how much Jesus loves them and that you loved them too. You then realized quickly, the zeal you found at the youth camp and you had been charged up for Christ, was not shared by the people in the church, nor did they understand your excitement. I remember hugging one older man and telling him Jesus loved him, after hugging him, he just looked at me kind of strange not saying a word and walked on in. Soon the mountain top experience faded and you lapsed back to the same consuming Sunday church routine.
Look what was wrote by the Divine Author of Jesus Christ by John to the church of Laodicea:
“‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. Revelation 3:15-16
So wow that puts it in pretty good perspective, we think of the church as a place where if a person needs Jesus, if he or she just needs saving then they should just come to church and there is where they will find Christ. Outside of that there is no hope for the lost people and just let them wander until they fall into the church one day. Well let me say that is so far from being the truth and we as churches in the west seem to have been lulled into that condition.
Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest… I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. (John 4:35-38 ESV)
So you ask, why do I, not a preacher or missionary need to spread the Gospel to the ends of the Earth. The short answer is that evangelism is not limited to someone who can preach a fiery sermon or be charismatic in moving a crowd of people to Christ. It is also not limited to extroverts or introverts. An encouraging thought to remember as the Holy Spirit draws people to Himself and helps to illuminate His truth in the hearts and minds of His people. It is not by our masterful communication that people surrender their wills to the will of the Father. God alone does this. We are just the vessels who carry the light. Absolutely, It was meant for ALL Christians to fulfill the Great Commission. So let me challenge the churches of America that “Something Needs to Change” . Do not let the weapon of comfortableness cause you Christians to sleep while people are dying without knowing the eternal life through Christ alone. Go with No Reserve, No Regret and No Retreat.
Charles Spurgeon once stated, “Have you no wish for others to be saved? Then you are not saved yourself. Be sure of that.”
The glory of God, and, as our only means of glorifying Him, the salvation of souls is the real business of life.- C S Lewis
