Wisdom for the Mission

It was a long weekend. With painting parties that outlived the night hours, a team of ten exuberant young and free Christians worked to fabricate four backdrops for a play that we will be producing for over 600 children in Burkina Faso in 2016. This project was full of fun as we worked to do what we could not do alone. This video captures the spirit of the project as we worked as a team for hours to paint sheet-sized backdrops.

Lessons from Luke 10:38

The Saturday morning after the weekend painting meeting and official kick off of the creative portion of the mission was complete with another medical training. In the quiet before the training, I had a few moments to glean wisdom from the medical trainer and seasoned missionary. In our talk, we discussed the familiar story of Mary and Martha found in Luke 10:38.

As our instructor sipped a cup of coffee, he shared valuable lessons from the field: When you start feeling like Martha, it is time to take a break." This simple sentence reminded us to keep Jesus as the focus through it all as we go into the service of others internationally. One of the repeated lessons that we have learned this week is to guard against distractions as we prepare to take the gospel to Burkina Faso. This lesson can also be found in Luke 10:38 and is so important to the mission which is simply to take the gospel to Burkina Faso in 2016.

Every heart, Every Mission

Another recurring theme from this mission is the fact that everywhere is a mission field. As we live and learn, we are made more aware of the fact that every moment that we live in the city we are missionaries whether we are preaching the gospel or making ramen. This requires an attention to detail in every aspect of our lives. From hospitality to how we present ourselves to the world, we are ambassadors and responsible for living as an example of the love and kindness of Jesus Christ daily.

A great quote from Ssem reinforced this fact, "Every heart with Christ is a missionary, every heart without Christ is the mission."This makes missions work all encompassing as we shine the light of Jesus on every heart and every life that we cross. How we treat our family, friends and coworkers plays an important role in our effectiveness as we learn how to live out the example of Jesus in the day to day processes like doing dishes, arriving to work on time and hanging with friends.

Of course, there is a lot of grace in missions so the space to grow is never out shadowed by the unmerited favor that makes it possible to continue to live, love and lead with friends and for Jesus Christ.