A Note from Pastor Steve
October 3, 1999
Last Sunday I had the opportunity to tell you about my recent trip to Poland, Kenya, and Uganda. In addition to giving a report, I shared some lessons that God has been teaching me through the trips I have been taking. I want to share more about that.
As I mentioned, when I am about to leave on another trip, someone will ask me if I‘m excited about leaving, and I can I can honestly say that part of me is and part of me is not. That probably sounds strange. Who wouldn’t be excited about going to places like Kenya, Uganda, Kazakhstan, Russia or Poland? Why am I not 100 percent ecstatic about the chance to travel and minister?
Just before I left the last time, it dawned on me that I am one who enjoys my routine, environment, hobbies, home, and my comforts. I begin each day at McDonald’s, drinking a cup of coffee and eating a (low fat) apple bran muffin. I enjoy reading the sports page, surfing the Net, working out at the gym, and seeing my grandkids! When I leave for three, four, or five weeks I have to leave all of this behind. I am forced to step out of my comfort zone, and my circle of confidence. For a risk-taking adventurer this would be 100 percent exciting, but for me, there is part of me that doesn’t want to go. But I go because of God’s call.
I wonder if the apostle Paul was always 100 percent excited and ecstatic about each new missionary journey. I have my doubts. Consider what he had to endure. He writes, "Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine (lashes). Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep" (2 Corinthians 11:24-25). It is hard for me to believe that Paul was ecstatic about leaving on new journeys after experiencing such hardships during the previous ones.
What is the point? We walk by faith not by sight. Walking by faith means we step out of our comfort zone to serve the Lord. What steps of faith are you taking in your service for God? What are you doing for Him that stretches you beyond your circle of confidence? What reasonable risks are your taking to spread the Word? Are you risking rejection to witness to your neighbors or friends? Are you sacrificing financially to help a missionary minister in another country?
Don’t leave the ministry to the risk-taking adventurers. All of us have been called to step out in faith, to be ready "in season and out of season," and to minister to our lost and dying world. It won’t always be comfortable, but it will always be rewarding.
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This site is maintained by David Gaddis. You can reach him via e-mail at dwgaddis@teleport.com |