I have had the opportunity to serve on multiple mission trips in my life. Each one has had a unique purpose for the trip. Good missional leadership would communicate the end goal of our trip to us, and we would set our eyes on what needed to be accomplished. Some trips I have been on accomplished our purpose early. Some trips required us getting up early and working late to finish the “task” which we were assigned. We never cared, though, because we were determined to complete the mission.
I have been thinking a lot about completing the mission that Jesus gave to me. I hope and pray that I have many more years on this earth to serve Jesus. However, I am asking God now, “What is the FULL MISSION you want me to complete? What is the FULL MISSION for our church?”
A Great Man, A Great Start
When we look at the first six books of the Bible, we read the story of God choosing his people (Israel) and the journey of bringing them into the Promised Land. It took a lot for them to get there and God used many people along the way. Joshua, however, was the one to lead them across the finish line. I am thankful to God for this great man and his example.
His famous words from Joshua 24:15 resonate in many of our hearts:
“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day who you will serve, whether the gods your father served in the region beyond the river, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!”
It was a “drop the mic” moment for Joshua. He led them into the Promised Land. All the people settled into the area that God had chosen for them. And then Joshua gives them the final speech, saying, “I am serving God, who is with me?” It seemed like Joshua was completing his mission. Had this story been written by Disney, the next verse would say, “….and the people lived happily ever after.” But the story wasn’t over and the mission wasn’t completed.
The Disconnect
Can you imagine what it would have been like to see the Red Sea part and to walk through on dry ground (Exodus 14)? How would you have reacted to see water come gushing out of a rock (Exodus 17:5-7)? How about seeing the walls of Jericho fall after marching around them for seven days (Joshua 6)?
The people of Israel saw these incredible miracles. They saw the hand of God go before them in battle. They saw His Glory in a way that I never have. So I believe Joshua’s question of “I am serving God, who is with me?” should have been an easy answer of “Sure, I’m in.” But here is where the disconnect occurred. Here is why the story didn’t end with a “happily ever after”.
When we turn to the beginning of the next historic book in the Bible called Judges, it says,
“And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work that the Lord had done for Israel.” – Judges 2:7
“And there arose another generation after them who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel.” – Judges 2:10b
The older people who saw the works of the Lord did not pass on to the younger generation the truth about God. There was a disconnect between the older generation who knew the Lord and His works and the younger generation who didn’t know about the Lord and His works. And because they didn’t know God, we read about how they lived:
“And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord… And they abandoned the Lord.” – Judges 2:11-12
“Whenever they marched out, the hand of the Lord was against them for harm… And they were in terrible distress.” – Judges 2:15
State of the Union
Every year, our government holds what they call a “State of the Union.” This is where the President shares how things are going in the country and discusses changes that need to be made.
Let’s have a State of the Union on how we are doing spiritually as a country. The numbers showing the decrease in church attendance, especially among young people, are staggering. The increase in anxieties, suicide, and unbiblical lifestyles is overwhelming. Faith and trust in God are on a fast decline.
I am thankful we are a church where there are encouraging things happening within our congregation. We see God moving. We see lives being changed. However, as we look to the nation we live in, our hearts should be broken!
Finishing the mission
I think for us, sometimes we feel pretty good about our mission and even say with confidence, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Because for many of us, we have found “success” in our lives. We have houses, careers, cars, and retirement savings. We feel we love God and even raised our children to serve the Lord. When we see all these good things accomplished, we can feel like our mission is complete.
But it is not complete!
Choosing to “serve the Lord” for ourselves is not enough. There are so many people who do not know Jesus! Worse yet, there are so many young people of the next generation who know nothing about Jesus. If we do not want history to repeat itself, we need to pray and believe for a great revival to break out among the next generation. We need to pray for God to use us to reach this next generation. We need to pray that this historical trend will be reversed. I believe God can use us and can do it!
Pray Pray Pray
I am not writing this to make you feel condemned in any way. I am writing this to encourage us to see the complete mission. I want to encourage us to take time as part of our week of prayer to pray for the next generation. They need our prayers so badly. The following are some directions that I would encourage you to take as you devote time to prayer.
• Pray that our hearts would be broken for those who do not know Jesus.
• Pray that God would open our eyes to see the young people all around us in our communities and our neighborhoods.
• Pray that God would start a revival in the next generation through a move of His Spirit and the Truth of His Word.
• Pray that our church would continue to impact the younger generation in our community.
• Ask God how He can use you to directly be involved in mentoring and passing on the Truth of God’s Word to the next generation.
• Ask God if He wants to use you in the Children’s or Youth Ministry at our church.
• Pray for Pastor Scott, Pastor Brinda, Jess, Allison, and all those who bring leadership in our ministries to young people at Abundant Life Church.
Tonight, January 11th, we will have a prayer service in conjunction with Torch Youth and Kids’ Clubhouse. Come and pray in person with us as we seek to pass the Truth of God’s Word to the next generation.
“One generation shall commend your works to another,
and shall declare your mighty acts.” – Psalm 145:4
