Showing posts with label Missionaries. Show all posts

And Another Hero Joins the Master  

Posted by Benjie in , , , , ,

My wife returned from a few days with her parents with the news that Elisabeth Elliot died today. The inspirational life and story of this giant in Christian faith is one that challenges us all to greater commitment. Perhaps it is the tragic story about the loss of her first husband which spurred her on to greater faith and subsequently has challenged many Christians to live their lives for the purpose of God’s glory. In any case, we must be grateful for the years and inspiration that were granted to us for her life and we can rejoice that she has now joined her lost Jim in worshiping at the feet of the Savior.

“Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)

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The Heart of a Missionary  

Posted by Benjie in , ,


I came back from North Carolina inspired. The missionary in me wept as story after story, image after image, bombarded my senses. I renewed old friendships, mended some personal fences, and healed my missionary heart.

The pastor in me began to think of all the ways that I and my church could meet needs that were presented during the summit. I began to make plans to invite a group of our church members to join me for the next summit in November. The purpose of attending another meeting of this nature is to allow them to firsthand catch the vision that God planted in me before I even knew of a place called Mulberry Grove.

The friend in me prayed and thrilled for the one who went with me as he began to wrestle with God's dealing in his heart.

Jesus said: (Luke 10:2) "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

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Heroes – The International Answer  

Posted by Benjie in , ,

Today, I would like to honor actually two groups—the temporal and the spiritual.

A heartfelt salute goes out to those men and women who have dedicated their lives to the cause of patriotism. We have military stationed at home and abroad that work daily to protect those “certain unalienable Rights” which were endowed by our Creator. We gladly live in a nation that bases its freedoms on the ideology that men can disagree with governmental decisions and make that disagreement known—broadcasting it venomously to all who will listen. I believe, however, that we ought to offer our heartfelt support to our military personnel wherever they may serve. They are heroes with a capital HEART. We should be thankful to God and to these people that they are on the job protecting our American ideals whenever they serve.

On the other side of the coin, serving around the world are people who take their relationship with Christ so seriously, that they have surrendered their lives, their careers, even their families, to the spread of the gospel. These people are known as missionaries. They carry the message of Jesus Christ to the world around them, whether it is at the corner store in Backwater, North Carolina, or at an outpost in the Zambizi desert. We as a church have romanticized missionary work to the point of placing missionary personnel on a pedestal picturing them as demigods. The reality is that missionaries are simply heroes—ordinary people doing extraordinary things. The difference between missionaries and ordinary believers is that they live to advance the Kingdom of God.

One group protects our Constitutional freedom.

The other advances our freedom in Christ.

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