John Piper wrote in his book Let the Nations Be Glad "If you love the glory of God, you cannot be indifferent to missions.”
Excuses are easy to make. They can sound persuasive at times. But what does God think about them? The Holy Spirit convicted me of that very question multiple times leading up to going on a mission trip to Guatemala. First, though, I want to be very clear who receives the glory for the work done in leading up to the trip, in my heart, and in Guatemala.
Jeremiah 9:24 says “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” Christ alone receives all the glory.
In the months leading up to the trip, I honestly did not know how to feel about this trip-- especially after my father received a call about a month before the trip that the lead missionary the group would be working with was murdered very close to where we would be staying. Martin Luther commented on this whole-hearted dedication to the gospel when he wrote "If he have faith, the believer cannot be restrained. He betrays himself. He breaks out. He confuses and teaches this gospel to the people at the risk of life itself.” Martin Luther's words ring true.
Before the trip, I began to formulate excuses in my mind why it “would not be best” for me to go. Not only was there a safety concern now, but the trip was rescheduled to the week of my final exams. My heart began to drop. Selfishly, I thought to myself, “Okay, maybe this is God telling me not to go on this trip.” I was so torn. I asked people to pray along with me that the Holy Spirit would guide me in making a final decision.
The next week at seminary, I felt the Lord answer so evidently. Through a special prayer night for the nations and encouragement from my professors, I made the final decision to go after reading in Matthew 28: 18-20 which says "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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” I reluctantly packed while slightly wondering if this was truly the right decision. A dear mentor who was going on the trip called me and prayed for me to have strength and endurance. In my mind, I was concerned about my performance on the final exams which I would be taking. Yet, the Lord allowed me to consistently remember to think back to when He prompted me to go to Guatemala originally. One truth stood out to me: Spiritual warfare comes in many forms. Spiritual warfare is sneaky, and quite often we don’t call it what it truly is because it hides behind “good things”. However, good things can so easily turn into idolatry when those “good things” come before seeking first the Kingdom. The very things that were holding me back- the grades, the safety, and my plans- were good things but not ultimately seeking first the Kingdom. Seeking first the Kingdom is not only local, but also national! John Stott wrote "We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God.”
The flights went smoothly. After two long flights the team arrived in Guatemala. Soon after settling in at the mission house, the pastor leading the devotions each morning called a meeting. He confessed that He, too, was experiencing spiritual warfare after his best friend (the missionary who had been killed) was shot months before in a place that was visible from where he was talking from. As a team, we prayed for the strength to stand firm in the calling to share the Gospel in Guatemala for the glory of God. The sermons each morning were from Mark 5 which is where Jesus calls out the evil spirits who had taken captive a Man. Spiritual warfare is real, and the first step in fighting it is recognizing it.
As the week started, I realized that the only way I could obey Christ whole-heartedly in Guatemala was to completely give my final exams (that I would take at the end of the week in Guatemala) to the Lord. I had worked ahead to the best of my ability before the trip, and now the result was in the Lord’s hands. During the week, part of the team would help at the missions school, feed families living off of the Guatemala dump, and throw spontaneous VBS’s around the sites where some crews were building homes for families living in poverty. My favorite memory from this trip was the morning of one of my three final exams. I had decided to stay at the compound in order to study for the test that afternoon. The Lord was tugging hard on my heart through. I knew in my heart that I was feeling the Holy Spirit to go out to a building site. I went to tell my decision to my dad and he looked me eyes and said "Kelby, what is the Lord leading you to do?" I knew at that very moment that the Lord had allowed my father to speak words to me to remind me to seek first the Kingdom. The Lord had allowed me to faithfully study before this trip, yet my flesh wanted to control the almost-perfect grades while grieving the Holy Spirit. Matthew 6:33 says "But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." As stepped on the bus to the building site, I began to pray that the Lord would bring children. He did! After we arrived on the site, children started gathering around. More children than I could even count! At first, we played duck-duck-goose. Then, the children began singing "Christo Me Ama" ("Jesus Loves Me") over and over. The challenge of communication was hard. I can not speak Spanish, but these children needed to hear the Gospel. With the help of Google Translate on my phone, the multitude of children were able to hear the Gospel. Technology can be used for good! In retrospect, if I would have followed my fleshly desire to compulsively study for the exam, I am not sure that those children would have been able to hear the Gospel clearly. That's not my work- that is the Lord's work. The Lord's work in my heart so that I can be more effectively used by Him for His glory alone.
My prayer going into this trip was that the Lord would open my heart to what He was teaching me and that He would break my heart for what breaks his. I can say with full confidence that the Lord answered both of those requests. The Lord really reminded me of my dependence on His Word. If you want to be an effective missionary, you must realize your dependence on Christ.
In fact, most of what the Lord taught me in Guatemala was based on the very passages dealing with spiritual warfare. As missionaries, we need to know that spiritual warfare is real. In Ephesians 6, the apostle Paul instructs Christians to fight against the evil schemes of the devil. (Ephesians 6:10-18). Paul does not just leave us here, though. He goes on to instruct us on How to fight! Ephesians 6:10–12 says, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” To be precise, If you are not going through spiritual warfare, then you probably are not following Jesus very closely. In order to fight well, we must realize what or who we are fighting.
Let this question challenge you just as it challenged me: Have you ever thought about the things you have missed out spiritually because you have not asked? I would have completely missed out on this mission trip if I had not asked the Lord to refocus my priorities. James 1:5 ESV says “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” This verse does not promise that we will be given everything, but rather that our desires need to be aligned with Christ’s desires. Each day we must ask this: Lord, what are you leading me to do today? As Christians, our lives should be focused on worshiping Christ.
Charles Spurgeon wrote “Every Christian is either a missionary or an impostor.” Missions is an overflow of our love for Christ. We can not pour out what we have not been filled with ourselves. If we truly love those around us and want to show the love of Christ to them, we must not start with serving- but abiding. Piper wrote “The goal of our mission is that people from all the nations worship the true God. But worship means cherishing the preciousness of God above all else, including life itself.” Then, after being filled with the love that our Lord showed us, we can show them. Why would someone want to serve out of an empty cup, when we can overflow with HIS?
Comments