Three Ways to Change Your World and the World Around You

Mike Hosey, An Elder

In every domain of life, every Christian should strive to be more like Christ (Ephesians 4:15-16). When we strive to be like Christ, we will grow in wisdom, maturity, power, and influence.  In fact, the more we grow in Christ, the more things like love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self control will naturally flow out of every life domain (Galatians 5:22-23). And those things have the power and influence not only to change our immediate lives, but all the world around us as well.  It is impossible to try and shape every domain of one's life at one time. Thankfully, when we start in the big areas, we have bleed-over into the smaller areas. So the more we attend to those major domains, the more effect we have on all of them. One domain of our Christian life that can have profound effects is the domain of missions.  Consider three ways that missions can effect us, and our world:

GIVING - When we give to missions, we are creating profit for ourselves.  Paul said that he was thankful for those Christians who had given to his work, not because he desired a gift from them, but because he desired that they be rewarded for their giving (Philippians 4:16-17). Paul understood very well that his Christian friends were storing up treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:20).

GOING - When we go to the mission field personally, we get to personally impact the lives of real persons. This is the work of every church member.  When Jesus spoke the command to go into the world and baptize the nations in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and to teach them to keep His commands (Matthew 28:19-20), He wasn't speaking to churches. Instead, He was speaking to 11 individual  disciples. If you are a Christian, you are an individual disciple, and it is as much your duty to go in to the world and do mission work --  regardless of whether it is in your  own neighborhood, or a country far, far away -- as it is your corporate Church's duty.

GROWING - When  you give, and when you go, you can't help but to grow. Both giving and going require faith.  They require that you trust God.  They require that you trust that He will take care of you, and that His mission is right, and that your obedience will be rewarded. In fact, God places a very high premium on faith.  Without it you cannot please Him (Hebrews 11:6). It stands to reason that those things we exercise, we grow. Therefore, exercising our faith by giving and going grows it, and consequently grows our ability to please God!