Today was the start of a new series in x:cell. Over the next few weeks we're going to be looking at Matthew 28:19-20.
Before we started I asked the group what the purpose of x:cell was. I was trying to them to understand that just being a holy huddle was just like use being a ship in a harbour. It's safe but it isn't the point.
A ship in a harbour is safe, but this is not what ships are built for.
(John A. Shedd, Salt from My Attic)
When then looked at the idea of "Go". We have to leave the harbour and fulfil our purpose. We often have this idea that the going is just for missionaries. They leave the comfort of the walls of the church and do bold, exciting things for the sake of the Gospel. Whereas, we normal types just do boring things confines to the walls of our church building. However, we are also called places. This may just be our street, or our school or our place of work. But we're called to bring God's glory to where we are.
Then I handed out some stickers, to remind them that we are called to bring God's glory to the world.
- Have you ever been or wanted to be a missionary?
- Where are you called?
- Do you find the idea of being a missionary wherever you are exciting, scary or just daft?
I like the stickers a lot!
ReplyDeleteI can remember very clearly a few times in my life when I had sat down and said frankly to God 'I want my whole life to be yours, I'm your servant, use me'.
Sometimes it's felt like I've been useless. Everyone talks about foreign missionaries with some sort of awe, like they are super holy just cos you've got to get on a plane to be where they are. BUT in hindsight I can see that God has totally used me and those times when I have said that I want to be used have been really significant.
Exciting!
(Sorry - long rant today)
1. Yeah I have. I don't think you can be a Christian and not be inspired by some of the amazing testimonies that missionaries have had. But at the same time, some of the most amazing Christians I've met have lived just down the road. It's about going where God wants us, not where it's cool to be.
ReplyDelete2. I don't know where I'm called to. I really enjoy working with refugees and asylum seekers, and would like to expand that to churches. There are so many people who arrive in the UK who are impoverished, scared and traumatised, and the church should really be reaching out to them. It's also a great way of reaching out to the 'nations', with them coming here. People from every country, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Atheist, need God. And, if they find Jesus and get deported, then maybe they can spread the good news in their own country. (not that I'm being a cruel cynic and hoping to convert people who go back to risk their lives. But I've heard stories of refugees who became Christian here and wanted to go back to the country that persecuted them. That's truly inspirational.)
3. Exciting and scary. Unfortunately, often the fear wins. Not fear of talking about God, but fear of getting it wrong, offending the other people, being a bit of a failure. I sort of take Homer Simpson's approach that trying is the first step towards failure. But I should always see that trying is the first step towards success.