Visiting the Mission Field II
August 27, 2008 – 6:29 pmI am not naturally wired for world travel, but visiting mission fields has been a life-changing experience for me. Every time I’ve traveled and every field I’ve visited has opened rich opportunities for learning. I enjoy returning to my trip journals to see how I expressed there what God was teaching me as I worked to think through the practical ramifications of His Word. There are vivid memories of long conversations and late night reflections on incredible days of ministry. I truly can’t explain how much I’ve learned from visiting God’s work around the globe.
My second reason for encouraging pastors (current and future) to visit the mission field grows right out of the work God does in your own soul through these trips. Visiting the mission field stirs your zeal for missions and increases your ability to challenge the congregation about missions. Seeing the Gospel at work to change lives and plant churches on the field lights a fire in your soul. It is easy to get so absorbed in the details of our own church ministries that we lose sight of God’s global work of calling out a people for His name.
I’ve been on fields that seem to be experiencing incredible times of harvest. It makes my heart long to see that in our land and in our church. I’ve been places where the work of evangelism seems extraordinarily hard and involves significant risk, and I’ve been humbled to think of the privileges I freely enjoy. More than once I’ve sat on planes heading back home with tears in my eyes and a heart that burns fresh with a desire to see God glorified around the globe.
There’s a difference in my preaching because of seeing these things. There’s especially a difference in my preaching about missions because of seeing these things. Instead of talking in general terms, I can use real examples and experiences to communicate truth. Not only is there more zeal, there is more credibility.
God has used visits to the mission field to strengthen my ability to lead our congregation more fully into Great Commission ministry. He uses it to get an ever-tightening grip on my heart so that I lift up my eyes to the fields of the world and call our congregation to serious missions commitment. Others may be different, but my heart for missions was radically altered by stepping on the mission field. I think yours will be too.
