Missions

I'm in St. Louis at Intervarsity's Urbana Conference. It's a work thing hosting a booth about our various mission opportunities. Although I'm here for work, it's personally rewarding to be surrounded by 20,000 college aged young people excited about mission work. Once again, it is the younger generation leading the way. If you've read my blog for any length of time, you know one of my main concerns is that the Christian church spends too much time sitting around in our buildings and not enough time out doing what Jesus asked us to do.

A word about the mission work of the church is in order. When it comes to disaster response around the world, none do it better or more efficiently than Christian missions organizations. Much of the meaningful recovery work after Katrina and Rita was done...and continues to be done...by Christian churches and organizations. The relief and aid I've seen in South and Central America and Africa by indigenous and visiting Christians is truly inspirational.

There's a sense of adventure and purpose when it comes to missions. Going out to help others is energizing. Making a difference in the lives of others gives a sense of purpose to our lives. I believe churches that aren't fully engaged in a variety of missions (and I don't mean giving money to others doing missions) are cheating those who attend those churches out of the full measure of the Christian experience. And mission doesn't have to involve traveling to far away lands. It can be helping a neighbor. It can be hosting a small group and inviting your friends. To me, mission is a fancy word for caring about other people and doing something to help them.

This help is driven by our faith in and love for Jesus Christ. He's done it all for us and, out of overwhelming gratitude, we do for others. Not to gain God's favor, but because we already have it. This should drive us out of our buildings to address the pain and suffering in this world. Not just when it's dramatic, like after a hurricane, but in every little situation where the love of Christ can make a difference.

I'm going to enjoy this week.