In the church, we know there’s a difference between ministry in our home culture and cross-cultural ministry. The former we just call “ministry” and the latter we usually call “missions.” I’m fine with this distinction. But I’ve recently noticed that the fundamentals behind ministry at home and ministry abroad are not all that different, though we often act like they are. Or at least I do.
When I was on a missions internship in London, most of our evangelism was to Muslims, Hindus, and Sikhs. The stark contrast not only in culture but in religion made me more attuned to spiritual realities. I was on a missions internship and my sole purpose on the trip was to share the gospel. When they rejected the gospel, I felt it. When my prayers seemed like they were hitting a wall, I felt it. Response to the gospel, or lack of it, was constantly before me. It wasn’t something I could easily ignore. The spiritual warfare seemed like it was a higher caliber than I’ve experienced back in the States. If anything was to be done there, we needed God to act.
But the reality is, there is spiritual warfare everywhere. This is not to negate the difficulties of missionary life or pretend like some places aren’t easier to minister than others. Instead, I want to remind us that ministry in our home culture, while different from missionary life, is not polar opposite to missionary life.
We also need God to act here, now, in our home country. I know this isn’t anything new, but I’m going to beat that drum again: your neighbors in the United States desperately need your prayers. Sure, they might not be following another religion, but there is still a spiritual battle raging for their souls. When we are accustomed to the culture, the battle can begin to feel normal to us, and that’s likely the reason we forget it’s importance.
So, I plead with you to view your current home as your mission field. Put yourself in the mindset of a missionary. Plead with God to open your eyes to the spiritual realities around you. What we see isn’t all there is—there is an unseen spiritual battle. Scripture tells us an unbeliever doesn’t have “just another worldview,” they also serve a false god.
I want to remind us of two things here:
1) Missionaries aren’t perfect. By saying we need to put ourselves into a missionary mindset, I don’t mean to imply that missionaries are always zealous, never discouraged, and always prayerful. We’re all sinners. But—the cross-cultural element of the mission field usually drives missionaries to a deeper dependence on God. We can learn from that.
2) For most of us, full-time ministry is not our vocation. Most of us spend our 9-5 doing something other than sharing the gospel with unbelievers. And that’s good! God doesn’t call everyone to ministry. The Spirit is present in our work whether it’s ministry or copywriting or law. However, while we aren’t all called to the same vocation, let’s not forget to learn from those with different ones. God still calls all of us to pray for and share the gospel with unbelievers around us.
Finally, we must remember the gospel. The Bible calls us to many things, none of which we can do in our own strength. None. But God has given us his Holy Spirit, the same Spirit who enabled Jesus to perfectly obey God. The Spirit renews our mind, reminds us to pray for others, and gives us wisdom to know how to share the gospel. But the trick is this: the Spirit does this as we look to Jesus.
Robert Murray McCheyne once said, “For every one look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ.” If you feel discouraged about your sin, if you feel the weight of your inability to obey God, look to Christ. Remember his love for you—he gave his life for you at the cross. He’s made you his own child. He sees you, he hears you, and he cares for you. And because of Christ he overwhelmingly approves of you.
So let’s rest in Christ’s love. And as we do, let’s ask the Spirit to remind us of the unseen spiritual realities of our every day lives.
A short but helpful article on the McCheyne quote: https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-purifying-power-of-delight-in-christ
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