This morning our men gathered with a number of missionaries we support as a church family. Ryan Greene serves as the RUF college pastor at Texas A&M. Josh Geiger is the pastor of Christ Rey Presbyterian Church in Dallas, a Hispanic church plant. Jacob Yohannan is the church planter in the metro NYC area, reaching second generation Indian and Asian Americans. Caleb Dunn teaches and trains pastors in Mexico.
The common theme that emerged from all of their presentations was the joyful hardship of persevering in gospel mission and ministry. While they are seeing people come to faith in Christ, the work is slow and often discouraging. They are tired. They work hard weeks and long hours. Sinful people constantly disappoint. Yet, there is real joy in seeing people come to faith and grow.
I think this morning's presentations really balanced out last night's call to gospel confidence. We heard yesterday evening that the gospel is powerful and deserving of our full might and confidence. This morning we got a dose of reality. Ministry is a long road without any easy short-cuts. If you do ministry to bring glory to yourself, you won't make it. Your heart must be pure. You must be about serving Christ. Otherwise, you won't make it. I was very touched with how some of our missionaries shared how hardship in ministry exposed their own sin. They discovered that they were prideful. And they came to see their own sin as the greatest hindrance to their ministry. What a godly perspective.
I walked away from our breakfast encouraged by this: we have a high mission to fulfill, but we're not in heaven yet. So it's hard. But it's worth it. Every bit of it. So let's encourage each other more. Let's build each other up more and pray for one another more earnestly as we all partner together in kingdom ministry, whether to Collin County, Bergen County or Monterrey, Mexico.
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2 comments:
There was a common theme that believers are won over one by one by one. Couple by couple by couple and family by family by family. This is the way that God seems to normally work and that is a good thing, but it is a long process. We all need to celebrate and have a festival every time there is a new believer being baptized. But then that also marks a long road of being discipled and having to wash ourselves in the gospel everyday.
Well said, Morry!
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