Well, the day is here and my team has officially LAUNCHED! While the week was grueling as we struggled in anticipation to be on the field, the week was also filled with lots of life-giving and highly necessary discussion surrounding different aspects concerning The Race. I thought to share some of these lessons with you as it is prevalent that we acknowledge- everyone has their own Mission Field they belong to.
There were three over-arching themes of the lessons from this week: Evangelism, The Why, and The Cost.
EVANGELISM. This word has an interesting tinge to it. In the past, when I heard the word “evangelist” I thought of someone on a street corner with a “JESUS SAVES” sign screaming at the top of their lungs about the consequences of Hell. Now, having been saved by Jesus and effectively being called to evangelize; my view has changed for obvious reasons. Evangelism is quite simply learning to be an effective communicator of the gospel.
Key word: effective.
This means that as passionate as the side-of-the-street-screamer may be, that isn’t quite how Jesus did the job. Jesus looked to understand his people. He gracefully spoke in parables to bring supernatural realities of heaven into terms we could relate to (how kind). He acted out God’s plan to redeem us and called people to love others above themselves.
This is the Jesus of the bible. This is the Jesus we often neglect to share.
That brings us to THE WHY. When asked why I chose to do the race, it was always a call and a longing for my soul to find an intimacy with the Lord that would require something of me. The Race is about intimacy if nothing else. However, true intimacy rarely presents the opportunity to be void of heartbreak.
So, I basically signed up to be broken-hearted for God.
At first glance, this seems really depressing and actually no fun to be invovled with (I hear you), but let me explain.
Heartbreak might be on our path to falling deeper in love with God and just because its hard doesn’t mean its the wrong path to knowing Him. This world is incredibly broken. If you don’t know this, you aren’t paying attention. In all the avoiding heartbreak we do, we grow numb to the reality that we need somebody to make sense of what we are not able to. *Que God.*
Maybe we have been avoiding the one thing that actually unites us with the Lord because we were never meant to thrive in a broken world. My why will surely be tested in this year and I must allow myself to be rescued by God.
Which brings me to THE COST. The price that is paid in following Christ. The principle that is the center of the Christian faith that no one wants to talk about. The principle that Deon (our teacher) did not dare sugar coat.
In building up disciples, shying away from the call to die to ourselves daily is a soul-crushing error.
This one is a toughie and seems unfair at times (because I know that I’m most often always correct in everything I do) but the Lord cares far more for our character development than our seemingly right opinions. We must lay it all down. In our pride, in our fight to be correct, to be exalted, to be served, in selfishness, and the urge to be in control. Its a command that is tough to follow but will lift up followers of Christ that actually look like Christ.
That doesn’t mean we won’t fail, we certainly will. This means that we are walking in obedience to what the Lord asks of us and in our lack, his grace is sufficient.
I am sure this year will be full of error as we learn to act out these lessons in real life. Lord knows perfection is not in my DNA. But how incredible would it be if we created the spaces around us to look like heaven here on earth?
Go evangelize. Figure out the why. Seek to know the cost.
I am thankful for leaders that teach based upon experience of their own walks and hope to come to the conclusion that no matter the circumstance, my God is so much better.
