Patience isn’t normal practice. Our legs bounce when our coffee orders take too long. In class or business meetings, our eyes dart back to the clock. Fingers twitch in irritation at the lack of response to the text message we just sent. We scroll through social media, huffing when someone runs a minute or two behind.
Our innovative world holds the most information we have ever had, yet our desires haven’t stopped. Our cravings to know cause our fingers to curl into fists. The lack of explanations on how to save a dying world makes us groan. We want answers now.
As Christians, we look at God’s mission the same way. He calls us to make disciples of all nations and to love (Matthew 28:19; John 13:34, NRSV). When we look out over the world, our hearts ache from the brokenness. We know Jesus can fix it. After all, He healed us. We know Jesus is the answer, but the world doesn’t. So we want to go out as He said and share His story.
That approach worked very well for a while. Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in 2017 said that 430,000 full-time missionaries served in other countries. In 2015, there were over 550 million evangelical Christians worldwide. Souls became cleansed through baptism in rivers, tubs, pools and oceans. People surrendered to Christ. Overseas, millions of lives changed.
But then COVID-19 hit. Traveling came to a screeching halt. Planes landed. Trains stopped. Borders closed. It left us impatient. ChurchNews reported in March 2020 that 67,000 missionaries were sent home for reassignment or release. We wondered how we could share the good news of Jesus Christ if we couldn’t leave our homes. Who would tell the world? Who would save them?
With these intrusive thoughts, we need to remember two things. One, God does the saving, not us. We are His disciples and His children. He equips us with spiritual gifts, meaning everything we say and do comes from His power, not our own. We can preach, teach, pray and serve (all of which are important), but we cannot transform hearts. That’s God’s job. We can trust Him to do it.
Two, God is omnipresent. God is working everywhere. When we act as missionaries, we are not bringing Jesus as a hero. He’s already there. We go to work with Him there as He works through us. I witnessed this firsthand in 2019 when I traveled to Kibera, Kenya. God blessed this group of pastors from different churches. They came together to strengthen their communities. I heard testimonies of faith and felt the power of prayer. I saw a miracle through a man named Festus, who suffered from terrible arthritis. He acted in faith and joined us in the streets to shine shoes. He said for the first time in ages, he didn’t feel any pain at all.
But none of this happened because my small Kentuckian group showed up. God had been there way before our plane landed. He still moves there today. One night, I remember the eleven of us debriefing. We realized the way we served overseas was how we needed to serve back home: making meals, visiting homes and schools, praying as we walked down streets. These simple tasks could spread God’s mission and love throughout our neighborhoods. In Kentucky, there are over 4,000 homeless people. 63 of those people live in my county.
In a time where travel remains restricted, why aren’t we pouring more into where we are? We can’t fly. We can’t cross borders. But we can cross the street. Safely, we can gather and work to help those hit the hardest by the coronavirus pandemic.
This year, a Federal Reserve Bank survey revealed 9 million small businesses are at risk of permanently closing. The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) said “more than 40 percent of seniors regularly experience loneliness.” That was before COVID-19. Mental health-related emergency room visits among children, according to the CDC, have risen between 24 and 31 percent, depending on age, from 2019.
If we are to follow God’s call, we need to pay more attention to our nation and cities. If we want to see the world changed, we must humble ourselves, as 2 Chronicles 7:14 says. There is passion behind our impatience. God wants us to use it right where we are, right now. It starts with us.
That may mean visiting a homeless shelter or a prison. Maybe it’s volunteering in children’s ministry. It could be checking in on your neighbors and donating to local food banks. It may be beyond your comfort zone. Yet, there’s peace in knowing God is already working where you plan on going. Trust me, He wants to see this world changed as much as you do.
