I have found the same question slipping into my head as I have talked with the Lord about our mission partnerships in various locations. "Lord are we there yet? Have we connected like you want us to connect yet? Is tis the partner we are to go deep with in the field?" The challenges of building deep relationships on the field with like-passioned people and leaders is a serious process of discovery and commitment. However, I have found myself talking with the Lord about these relationships a great deal lately.
We have been blessed over the past five years to meet some of the most amazing servants of the Lord on the field. Specifically, in Guatemala we have connected with Iglesia Jerusalen and the members of that faithful church. Led by Pastor Morales, this local faith family has taught us so much about ministry and mission in cross-cultural settings. As I think about being there yet, I realize how far we have come. I have this past week looked back over the five years since first returning to Guatemala with a team and am amazed at how far we have come! The Father has blessed us with really good friends and deep relationships in Guatemala. The Lord has allowed us to realize a huge step of supporting the Brown family in their move to Guatemala to serve alongside the local church and its ministries. We have partnered with a church plant in Sajcavilla outside the city. And we have begun to have an impact on the lives of some special families in this Mayan village up in the mountains.
As I reflect on getting there, I realize how far we have to go. The work is beginning to show us how deep the need is for spiritual darkness to be confronted with the Light. The opportunities for the Gospel to spread among the local communities and clusters of houses is exploding. The need for more resources and supplies for teaching the Word is growing with every home visit. The requests for help with home repairs, Bible studies and food bags grows with every conversation in the community. There is so much to be done and the urgency is so high...how can we possibly meet the needs?
The response to the question really has more to do with our willingness to be obedient than the location on the map we find ourselves. Finding ourselves in a place of obedience has more to do with where we are in our faith journey than how many books we have read or how often we are in church. The place of openness to the guidance of the Holy Spirit is so much more critical than how much we follow the latest words of our favorite blogger or model our lives after our favorite preacher. The place we need to seek is a place of unwavering faithfulness to the call of God to show the Gospel in every aspect of our daily life and share the Gospel message in every opportunity the Father provides.
As I write this blog tonight all over the world gatherings for worship are beginning and preparations are underway to gather with other believers for a time of worship and sharing the Word. As these gatherings take place, I wonder how many of the people in attendance will be there? How many of us will be there? Will you and I be at that place of obedience where God can speak truth into our lives in a way that brings about a response and change in what we do? Are you at a place where the Lord can send you to the person in your community who needs to see and hear the love of Christ fleshed out in front of them?
As you walk through the day, where you are greeted by those who have a heart seeking the Lord, will you ask the Lord of the Harvest to send workers into the field? Will you show the Gospel in the responses you have to those around you? Will you share the Gospel with those whom the Father brings across your path? Will you be there?
