I was blessed and convicted during the Missions Conference this past weekend. In the midst of running this crazy rat race we call life, the messages given by George Verwer pierced my heart and made me re-evaluate my purpose and my priorities. What am I chasing after? On what do I devote my heart, time, and talent? For earthly or eternal pleasures?
During Sunday’s service, George preached from Isaiah 6 and challenged the congregation to examine our hearts. Who will go and preach the Good News of Jesus to those who have never heard the Gospel? How many of us are willing to say to the Lord, “Here am I. Send me?”
For some of us missions may mean going to a hostile country or remote third-world nation. But sharing the Gospel starts right where we are. It is simply saying to God, “I’m available. Use me.” And we don’t need a seminarian degree, an extensive spiritual resume, or have our lives put together. As George repeatedly stated, God can use anyone for His purposes, even the messiest and most broken of us. The only requirement is that we humbly acknowledge our brokenness and our inadequacies and then let the Holy Spirit do the rest.
So how can we be available and invest in the Kingdom right where God has us?
(1) He has placed us here in the New York metropolitan area, one of the busiest, most diverse, and most influential areas of the world. Whatever your career, or even if you are a stay-at-home parent or retiree, ask God for opportunities to share the Good News of Christ with those you encounter in your daily life and know that He will certainly answer. Perhaps it will be through establishing a friendship with a co-worker, a neighbor, a client, a patient, or a student.
Invite people to your home: for dinner, game night, or a book club. Arrange play dates for your children and their friends. My son has befriended an Iranian Muslim boy, who lives right down the street from us. God has opened the door for us to build a relationship with this boy’s family, even allowing opportunities to discuss our faith with them. I’ve now put my son’s friend on the “Holy Ghost hit list” (as George Verwer called it), and I’m praying this young boy and his family will come to the know the living, almighty, and merciful God.
(2) Right now, God has us here at Grace Redeemer Church, to be a light in the northern New Jersey area. Start with your church. Various ministries at GRC are in need of additional volunteers. If you know how to smile and hand out a bulletin, the Sunday Ops team can use you as an usher. If you like working with children and know how to use a pair of scissors or love holding babies, Children’s Ministry could use you. Do you have a love for cooking? Then you could bless others through the Meals Ministry! Complete the My Part in the Body form
and an office staff will help you get started.
(3) Right now, there are several local missions opportunities to practically share Christ’s love with those who are marginalized or have never heard the gospel. These organizations, which GRC supports and partners with, are The Open Door NJ NY in West New York, New City Kids in Paterson, and Intervarsity at FDU with April Sime. Explore these various opportunities and perhaps you will find a place where God can use your specific talents, gifts, and personality traits for the glory of the Kingdom. For more information, you can contact Missions.
So, fellow brothers and sisters:
Let’s make ourselves available.
Let’s get involved in what God is doing.
Let’s share the good news of what Jesus has done!
Let’s say, “Here am I. Use me.”
If you missed any of the conference, you can watch the all the sessions here: GRC Missions Conference 2017: George Verwer.
Rachel Sang is a Co-Director of the children’s ministry at Grace Redeemer. Besides being a wonderful wife and mother, Rachel is a talented writer.