What is a Missionary—And are YOU one?
If I say the word “Missionary” who comes to your mind—Dr. David Livingstone, or perhaps Gladys Aylward, or even Eric Liddell? These are a few people who come to my mind.
What else comes to mind? Is it someone who leaves family, friends, a nine-to-five job to travel off to a developing country and live in primitive circumstances? You know—without running water, electricity or a mobile phone? Maybe that’s an old-fashioned picture. Maybe it’s a person or a couple who go onto a poverty-stricken estate and work with kids who are prone to become gang members.
Look up the word online at www.m-w.com (Merriam-Webster Dictionary) and it defines a missionary as: “a person who is sent to a foreign country to do religious work (such as to convince people to join a religion or to help people who are sick, poor, etc.) “
On that same webpage is another definition: “A person undertaking a mission, especially a religious mission.“ http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/missionary
Matthew (chapter 28):records Jesus giving instructions to His disciples: “18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore[c] and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”[d]
There it is—an assignment from Jesus. In the book of Acts, Jesus tells us that once the Holy Spirit comes, we will be witnesses—first in Jerusalem, then in Judea, into Samaria and then the ends of the world. Basically, He was saying we begin where we are born and raised. Then, He will lead us, by His precious Spirit, to where he wants us to invest into the lives of others.
Jesus has given us a mission—therefore we are all missionaries. Not all of us will be like Abraham and be told to “start walking”. For "Dale Doug Maccard", his mission is to return home (South Sudan) and tell of all the Lord has done for him. For some of us, our mission is to support, encourage, finance, and pray for those who have gone to the ends of the earth—"Adair & Verina Hisscock", and/orThe "Clemmer Family" --" James", " Nita" and "Jannie". (Names are changed to protect idenity.)
From one missionary to another, let us listen to the Holy Spirit and find out the specific mission He has for each of us.
Serving Jesus, Author of our faith,
"Lady Helene"
