A Missional Lifestyle: Living onMISSION

It’s quite eye opening when you go from the change of viewing yourself as someone who may GO on a mission trip to someone who thinks that every day of their life is a mission. The person who lives mission minded learns three major things right away. Knowing these things may help you under stand what happens in these different life styles, why knowing the difference IS important, and what can happen once you know the difference.

1. Examination and Repentance

When you live mission-ally There are infinitely more choices to make because every decision , every interaction, becomes much more valuable. There begins to to be more weight to your everyday activities. There begins to be an everyday response to certain situations. To me this also leads to a much more intense sense of selfishness and recognition of personal sinfulness. As someone who is seeking to live their life for Christ, that also means that there will be a lot more repentance in light of all the self evaluation. The more aware you are of who you are, and what God has done, the more radiant Gods light will shine forth from your ashes. Living humbly and working through the issues in your life in a Christ centered way is one of the most effective witnesses of God in your life.

2. Investments and Relationships

As soon as you start to look away from yourself and direct your attention outward you begin to notice where and with whom are you investing your time, energies, and life. With this comes the meditation on how your interactions, or lack there of, with others reveals a lot of your effectiveness or ineffectiveness as a witness. The less you invest into others the poorer your relationship with them will be. As well, it greatly effects community as well. If you are choosing to invest, the fruit, on both ends will begin to blossom and show itself within your life, your community life, and in your churchs’ life. The church is a living and breathing thing that feeds on relationship grown by the root of the gospel. The root of the gospel is relationship. God engaging us in a relationship, and Jesus bringing us back into that relationship after we dirtied it.

3. Open Doors and Divine Meetings

The first two samples of change here are based more on what God does in opening your eyes in the place you already are. I believe that that one of the other major things that God does is shows us how in control of everything He is. When we start to walk in obedience He begins to open up our lives to situations we may not have previously been ready to handle. Was it not the servants who took the masters gold and invested it that received the greatest rewards? He who took the biggest chance also reaped the biggest rewards.

20 The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, ‘Sir, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 The one with the two talents also came and said, ‘Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.’ 23 His master answered, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master answered, ‘Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn’t sow and gather where I didn’t scatter? 27 Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest! 28 Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. 29 For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless slave into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth’” (Matthew 25:20-30)

All this to say that obedience = opportunity. If you are faithful in the things already planted into your life, then you will have set yourself up to take on the upcoming missions.

Living a missional life style is not easy, and it can often be painful because you are witness to your own shortcomings quite often, but the rewards always outweigh the pain, the frustrations, and the fears.

The mission is to bring the Good News of the gospel to the nations. Let us not be so busy letting other people take care of the greatest call in history, that we ourselves fall asleep on the job. It’s not time for sleeping, arise and shine with the glory of the Lord for the sake of all that may be saved through our obedience!