This week we had the topic of mission and what that means in our lives as we go on our outreach trips and what it means in the spectrum of the rest of our lives. Our speaker was Waqa, who is from the Island Breeze YWAM base in Brisbane. He is originally from Fiji and came to Australia about 15 years ago and has lived a life of mission ever since doing his own DTS. He gave us a few statements telling us what being a missionary is about and it basically isn’t a job or an event it is a lifestyle. With that lifestyle we are called to make disciples and not to make Christians out of all nations. This is something that hit me as we try to make so many people fit into what we have molded Christians to be in the way we look, yet we fail to teach them how to live it which is the true mark of a disciple.
We discussed how the God we serve is a missionary God and if we read Genesis 1:1-4 then we can actually know all we need to know about who our God is. In verse 1 we know that God created the heavens and the earth and everything in it. God is omnipresent which means that He is everywhere all the time which we read in verse 2. In verse 3 we know that our God is a God who communicates to us and His voice is a voice that brings peace within our spirit. Verse 4 explains how our God is all knowing about everything and that He is all powerful and has power or authority over everything such as the enemy we face in the devil. So when we look at who our God is in we hear about His glory and how Moses wanted to see His glory, but really in the Hebrew meaning which Genesis was written in there is no word for glory as it is unexplainable. That is the God that we serve and are in partnership with, the God that takes our words away because of how amazing He is.
With our God being a missionary God the Bible is our missionary book, which was inspired by Him and His works. The bible is the way that we can become closer to God and become in tuned with His will. We all have many different bibles and if it all is inspired by God then why are there so many translations such as the KJV, NIV, and the Message? Well the many different versions allow it to be cross cultural as it makes it possible to get past cultural and language barriers. Waqa preached to us how it is so important to understand the vision of God and you can only do that by getting into His word, the Bible.
In getting in tuned with God’s word and helps us to see His vision and through that vision then we are able to be disciples and make disciples. With this we have 3 challenges in every culture that we have to get past in order to achieve our mission or goal of a lifestyle, which missions is. We have to overcome the issue of money as a source of integrity, sex as the foundation of a relationship and not using it in the context of why God created it, and power as a means of authority because God is our authority and we get our rights from Him. These challenges are ones that are huge and in each area you have to get in tuned with their culture before you can actually tackle these issues. This all takes hard work and time and this isn’t just in third world countries it is right at home in the community and things we need to teach ourselves and the next generation.
This week we got a true taste of missions and how it is something that is cross-cultural and one in which you have to be relational and take time to get to know other cultures and their interest. Waqa is in charge of the Rugby DTS and brought down nine guys with him and 8 of them were from Fiji and one was from Scotland. It was amazing to learn about their culture in Fiji and just see how generous and relational they are in the Fijian culture. The truly love their neighbor over there and it is custom to invite others over for meals and if you don’t then you are seen as lesser of a person because you are going against the culture. The Fijian guys here are very generous as they gave me this Fijian Rugby jersey, which is an $80 gift and they still don’t have enough money for them to go on outreach. They also put on a show for us with their dances and songs and it seriously is some of the most beautiful songs I have ever heard, sounded like angels singing. This generosity just continued to pour in from others this week as I was about $1,000 short for outreach and my church and its members took up and offering and through that has provided me with all the funds I need to go on outreach. Our God is a God of love and with that He wants us to be a unified body from missions to Sunday church service and everything in between. When we have faith and works in our faith with that love we are blessing others and God will bless us and I have seen those examples in my life over these last couple weeks.
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