If you don’t know my story, I served as a missionary on something called the World Race for 11 months. At the end of my trip I wrote a blog about how I wasn’t leaving behind the call to be a missionary because I felt that the call to be a missionary was a lifelong call, I quoted Mother Teresa ““We all have been called by God. As missionaries we must be carriers of God’s love, ready to go in haste, like Mary, in search of souls; burning lights that give light to all men; the salt of the earth; souls consumed with one desire: Jesus.”
And I said “A missionary is just that, a person who is consumed with one desire, Jesus. A person who is a carrier of His love, a person who brings light, a person who goes where God calls and serves and loves whatever souls God puts before them.”
Last night our country was shocked and saddened by the horrific acts of violence in Las Vegas.
And in the midst of the horrific tragedy from last night and the many other tragedies plaguing our world today many Christians and non-Christians alike, are seeking reason and explanation. The nagging and unanswered question: Why?
Our country is hurting and broken.
Our world is hurting and broken.
And there’s an army of love spreading, light bringing missionaries that are hibernating and awaiting the call to mobilize.
And YOU are one of them.
A missionary doesn’t have to go overseas. A missionary doesn’t have to travel somewhere. A missionary doesn’t have to distribute bibles and tracks. A missionary doesn’t have to have formal training. A missionary doesn’t have to be charismatic.
A missionary is a person living with a passionate desire to bring Jesus to the world around them, wherever they have been called. A missionary can work an Average Joe job, be a stay-at-home mom, run a multi-million-dollar company, live overseas, or run an orphanage or anything in-between.
What defines them is that they live with the intentional goal of being a light, spreading love and sharing the gospel through words and actions.
I am a missionary. I didn’t start out as one. Even when I chose to go on a yearlong mission trip I was not a missionary. I didn’t know how to live in a way that brought the Kingdom to those around me, I didn’t know how to walk step in step with the Holy Spirit.
But I learned.
I grew.
And you can too.
The greatest commandment from Jesus was an order to mobilize.
Love thy neighbor as thy self.
Mobilize to love.
This call is not easy.
Jesus did not mean love when it is convenient.
The love He calls us to is Agape love.
In the bible Agape love is an unconditional love that knows no bounds and has no strings. That is a hard kind of love. It means we must grow in humility, and drop our pride. It means we must give of ourselves and our possessions and drop our selfishness. It means we must have grace and drop our coarseness. It means we must seek our Father to fill our cup so that everyday his love and grace and humility and blessings might overflow out of us and into those around us.
He has equipped us with all the tools a missionary needs. His word, prayer, community and a mission to love.
Do not turn away from the everyday calling that has been placed on each of us. Turn to the Father every day and ask for his guidance. Seek community that will help you grow in your ‘missionary skills’. Pray for how He is calling you to love today.
So don’t just pray for Las Vegas today, step out and take on your call to love, do something for someone, let them know that you care and you’re there for them.
Because YOU are a missionary.
And your mission is love.
