This past week, we had the World’s Cheapest Missions Trip. From Monday to Thursday, each day was an action-packed time where students from all over the country raced to explore the different cultures located in Atlanta, Ga. We went to a Catholic cathedral, Hindu and Buddhist temples, a Muslim Mosque, a dead church that turned into a concert hall/nightclub, and a cemetery. Each location we went to drove in the point that there is an entire world of people who don’t know who Jesus is. As the students experienced this trip, our goal was to have this reality hit them and challenge their hearts on what they would do about it. We wanted them to evaluate what is holding them back from serving God in missions. On the final night, several people came forward to dedicate their lives to serve God in the mission field!!!
While I wasn’t able to go to every activity, there were two events during this time that had a major impact on my life.
Car Wreck
The first one was being in a multi-car wreck on the interstate. It had been raining earlier that day, so the road was still slick. I remember right before it happened, we were talking about why we pursuing missions and how we aren’t guaranteed tomorrow so we need to do the work now. We went over James 4 on how we shouldn’t make plans for our life without first considering the will of God. A few seconds after that conversation died down, the car in front of us slammed on its brakes and our car spun out when trying to avoid hitting it. For a few seconds, as I looked at the car about to T-bone us, I had a moment of clarity that this could be my time to die. Then God allowed our driver to get control back and move out of the way in time. During the aftermath, the man behind us told us that God was in this crash. We were able to have a good conversation and he told us that he was listening to the word of God when the crash happened. If God hadn’t intervened, it would have been a devastating wreck for us. There are two lessons that I learned from this. One is that my time is limited and not guaranteed. I have a job to do on this earth that God has given me. I need to get to work now, not wait for tomorrow. The second is that God’s plan is perfect. It is no coincidence that we were having that conversation before we had our accident. It is no accident that our vehicle was able to get out the way and only suffer minor damage compared to the wrecks behind us. That the only two cars to suffer minor damage were listening to God’s word at the time. God has a plan for our lives, and He places people and events in our life to guide us to be able to carry that plan out. This event has served as a reminder that the time is now to serve.
Mosque
The second event that stirred my spirit was listening to the Muslim tour guide. Someone asked him how he got into Islam. He responded by saying that he was searching for who Jesus really is. Is he the savior and all the other titles people give him? He then told us that Jesus is a great prophet and you can’t be a Muslim and not love Jesus. As he was talking, my heart broke and my entire being screamed at me to share the truth with him. He kept on badly cherry-picking sayings and stories from the old and new Testaments to try to validate what he was saying. This opened my eyes to how dangerous Islam and other false-religions are to those who don’t study God’s word. They take the truth and distort it into lies to ensnare those searching for the truth. I pointed out that he acknowledged the Bible as a holy word, and that it tells us that God the Father claimed Jesus as his son. I then asked him how can you reconcile the Bible claiming Jesus to be God and the Quran claiming him to be only a prophet if they are both holy scripture. He answered by saying the Bible is corrupted by translations and only the Quran was perfectly preserved by God. This event has been on my mind ever since. He is just one example out of BILLIONS of people who crave the truth and got caught up in a death trap. In Matthew 16:13-16, Jesus asks his disciples the most important question in the world. WHO IS JESUS? Some men called him John the Baptist, others Jeremias, and others just a prophet. These were people who had witnessed his miracles with their own eyes. They knew there was something different about Jesus, but they missed the mark. Looking at this passage and the man in the Mosque, I can see that this question is just as relevant now as it was back then if not more so. Peter answered Jesus, saying that he is the Christ, Son of the Living God. In verse 17, Jesus says that he got this answer from God the Father, not anything that Peter himself could come up with. The man at the mosque sought the truth but had no one to share it with him. God used this moment to strengthen my resolve to reach the lost.
Call to Action
In today’s world, there are billions of people who don’t know the truth. As followers of Jesus Christ, we have been given the responsibility to share the truth with the lost. My fellow brothers and sisters, can you feel the weight of this burden? Are you praying daily that workers would be sent out so many would be saved? My brethren, the time is now. You are not guaranteed tomorrow. What are you doing to spread the good news that God has given you? Will you be like those shown in the picture? Will you give your life to spreading the Gospel?
Prayer Requests
- Pray for those who signed the pledge. That they would stay focused on God and keep their enthusiasm for missions
- Pray for more people to give their life to missions
- Pray for our van ministry. We are working to overhaul it and really get it booming. We are about to have our first big monthly outreach event to get kids signed up to be on the van route.