My Mission
God has been stretching me to change my view of missions and reaching out. I have been learning that I don’t have to be ready or perfect for what God has for me to do, I just need to obey Him. I have always been interested in mission work, but never been bold enough to seriously pursue it or find out more about it. But it seems that lately everywhere I go and everyone I meet in some way ties in with mission work.
My boyfriend and I have often talked about it and it is something both of us are interested in, but he doesn’t have the same inhibitions as I do. His boldness in serving has in turn made me want to be more bold. I now also have the opportunity to attend a weekly bible study about mission work that is really opening my eyes to what it means to reach out and what other churches look like around the world. It provides practical information about how to be a missionary and the issues we should be thinking about. It has been really challenging. I heard the leader of our study give a talk about Jonah and how God wanted to use him in a city where he didn’t want to go because he thought the city would never repent or that it wouldn’t be worth his time. He ran away and tried to hide from God, but we all know that after an awful boat ride followed by three days in the belly of a fish, Jonah changed his mind and went to Nineveh. The part I think we often forget is that Nineveh accepted Jonah. They didn’t try to kill him or run him out of town, they were ready to hear about God and just needed someone to come tell them.
It was then that I realized I could be that ‘someone’. It doesn’t matter that it scares me or I don’t think people will listen to me because God has a plan that is much bigger than all of my trepidations.
So, I have been thinking about how I can become more involved in preparation for wherever God takes me and I realized that I have an opportunity to serve right here at Neighborhood Church. I fill out the announcements for the 6:13 bulletin every week and every week I put one in about the International Student Fellowship. When I looked at it the other day it was like seeing it for the first time. I found myself asking why I don’t already go to that and help out. I am so glad that God has been showing me that it is all right to be nervous about what He has planned for me, that I just need to trust Him and see where He takes me. Realizing this has not taken all my fears away, but rather has shown me that they shouldn’t be a handicap for what God has planned for my life.
My boyfriend and I have often talked about it and it is something both of us are interested in, but he doesn’t have the same inhibitions as I do. His boldness in serving has in turn made me want to be more bold. I now also have the opportunity to attend a weekly bible study about mission work that is really opening my eyes to what it means to reach out and what other churches look like around the world. It provides practical information about how to be a missionary and the issues we should be thinking about. It has been really challenging. I heard the leader of our study give a talk about Jonah and how God wanted to use him in a city where he didn’t want to go because he thought the city would never repent or that it wouldn’t be worth his time. He ran away and tried to hide from God, but we all know that after an awful boat ride followed by three days in the belly of a fish, Jonah changed his mind and went to Nineveh. The part I think we often forget is that Nineveh accepted Jonah. They didn’t try to kill him or run him out of town, they were ready to hear about God and just needed someone to come tell them.
It was then that I realized I could be that ‘someone’. It doesn’t matter that it scares me or I don’t think people will listen to me because God has a plan that is much bigger than all of my trepidations.
So, I have been thinking about how I can become more involved in preparation for wherever God takes me and I realized that I have an opportunity to serve right here at Neighborhood Church. I fill out the announcements for the 6:13 bulletin every week and every week I put one in about the International Student Fellowship. When I looked at it the other day it was like seeing it for the first time. I found myself asking why I don’t already go to that and help out. I am so glad that God has been showing me that it is all right to be nervous about what He has planned for me, that I just need to trust Him and see where He takes me. Realizing this has not taken all my fears away, but rather has shown me that they shouldn’t be a handicap for what God has planned for my life.
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