Entrepreneurs readily champion causes that contribute to the good of the world. While the world needs all the charities, orphanages, and non-profits it has and more, ministry is limited when one puts social causes first. Where is one to go, then, when he wants to do good and aid in the spread of the gospel? The clear-cut roles of pastor and missionary are the first choices, but some people are not called to be a public leader or uproot their lives.
Many people growing up in the church can point to trips and times of service where they experienced the joy of evangelism and missions, but could not sustain that motivation when they returned to their “real lives.” Foreign countries are just too far away, trips are too long, and funding is uncertain. It seems impossible, or at least highly inconvenient, to pursue such a service opportunity. However, when considering who one can serve, the people of the church are often left out.
Brian Mosley, president of RightNow Media, had one of these typical missions experiences. But instead of letting his inspiration fizzle out, he came to a realization. “Where we live doesn’t make us missionaries,” he states on his page on RightNow’s website. “The mission we are on makes us missionaries.” Bluefish TV, the parent ministry to RightNow, was a media company that created church resources. RightNow worked to connect people who had the typical mission trip motivation with further opportunities. Eventually, the two merged into a people-centered mission that exemplifies a grounded, holistic approach to ministry. Now they provide much needed video resources to churches, small-groups, and more, so that those ministries can focus more on the work they are called to do.
Ministering to the church instead of from it is essential but readily forgotten. While the church should not be full of cliques and navel-gazers, Christians need support just as much as non-Christians. The perception that the church should be better than needing support is frankly hypocritical and should be eradicated. And yes, evangelism is the ultimate goal of ministry, but it is certainly not the only function. So next time a service opportunity seems inacessible, look at what you can do to serve the people around you. Don’t waste your time looking for the best opportunity when there are people in need right in front of you.
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Very well said. We do often get very caught up in always wanting to do something big, but those opportunities are few and far between. And in-between those few opportunities we miss all of the little ones that we have every single day to help those immediate people around us. It is hard sometimes to stop and actually survey our immediate surrounding because we assume that everything and everyone is all good, but I would say that 99.9% of the time that is not the case and there is something that we could be doing to make a significant difference in someone's life.
Love this post, great content!
Hope you have a wonderful rest of your week!
-Collier
Daniel, I appreciate you emphasizing how being a missionary should not only apply to specific organized trips, but should play out in our everyday lives. We often shy away from doing so with people God puts directly in our lives. Doing so may be more uncomfortable than in a large group, but it is an opportunity God provides for pretty much every Christian. Many of us stray too far in our comfort zone and turn this opportunity down.