Day 10 – A new Journey

1 Corinthians 2:9 However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”

Now you are finally back home. The last few weeks were a very exciting and dynamic affair but now your are slowly going back to normalcy. Stories of the "frontlines" are asked by eager friends and family members and you try your best to recount what God has done to you and His people. As you relive the short days in the field, you can't help but wonder how it would be like to come back again.

Whether God wants you to come back or not, be secured that He has plans for you here back home. He has shown you great things during the short time abroad and have thought you great insights on His plans in the world. You have come back a different person. Now have faith that the same God you have changed you will continue to guide you for  the rest of your life.

So what should we do in the mean time? Ask God of course! He will show you what you need to do.

This is Gedward's insights after his Short term mission in Bangladesh. God had shown him a greater perspective on reaching the lost. The trip has made the Great Commission much more real and urgent.

Furthermore, the time that he spent with the family of the local pastor has helped him love and appreciate his family more.

During our time together, he told me that in Matthew 24:14, Jesus declared that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God will be preached to the whole world before the end will come. This verse became one of his main motivations in reaching the lost for he longs to see the Lord come back here in the world.

Day 9 – Waiting for the Harvest

1 Corinthians 3:6-7 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

It seems that it just have been a few days since you have decided to join a short term mission. The triumphs and setbacks, the joys and the fears seems to be just a memory. It seems that what you have done in the mission field is not enough.

However, you should be encouraged. God has faithfully shown you that a normal person can have enough faith to reach the lost. That same God will show you that what you have sown in faith, will provide a great impact in the country that you ministered in. We cannot see it now but what we have done will help future leaders rise up and and then continue on the work that we started. The Apostle Paul could not have reached the Gentiles had not for the short but relevant ministry of Ananias.

 

This is what Yrose hopes for her ministry in China. Although the country and its culture are vastly different from the Philippines that she knew, she still managed to accomplish her short term. Even with the hostility for Christian missionaries in the country, her team was still able to minister to the student and help the beleaguered church.

Yrose was able to make some local friends in the short time that she was in the country. It was unfortunate that she is unable to reach them from home but she hopes that they would continue their walk with Christ. She trusts the future waves of short term missionaries would able to reach the hearts of the China's youth.

Finishing Strong

"The history of missions is the history of answered prayer." – Samuel Zwemer, the Apostle to Islam

Finally you have achieved your goal of finishing the short term ministry. You have done your best to touch the lives of the people your chosen country and gave all you got to help your brothers and sisters in Christ. Still, it seems that you could only do so much. Do not fret. The things you did here and the things that you experienced will never be forgotten by God. These small ripples that we made in the Name of Jesus will reverberate throughout all time.

Day 8 Blessing the Workers

2 Corinthians 9:12 (ESV) For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.

We have engaged and befriended the Lost and have asked blessings upon blessings upon the land. Time is already running short but there is still one more group of people that we need to share our blessings with.

The long term missionaries have always been in our side since we have set foot in this new territory. The have provided their time and talents to God's work long before our arrival and have used every last bit of their experiences to make sure that we accomplish our missions.

It would be quite refreshing for them to have us unconditionally returning the favor and bless them in return. They are one of the best comrades to have in this war against the Enemy and they deserve every little respite that they could get. We could use our own God-given talent to lighten their load and give them encouragement to not waver in their work.

 

This was Ate Love's experience when she went to go for a short term mission to Bangkok, Thailand. Her aim back there was to serve, not only the Lost and the young Christians but also the long-term missionaries that worked there.

Her leader asked her to provide info about their strengths and relayed this to the local missionaries so that they would be more effective in serving the people. The info helped Ate Love focus on the kid's church (KC)  ministry. Their team provided the local church with plenty of KC supplies such as t-shirts and other KC related materials. Ate Love also assisted the local KC teachers on ministry and leadership skills with their team's seminars.

When the time for them was drawing near, Ate Love and her team hosted a party for the church. God also gave Ate Love the gift of dancing and she shared this talent to express His love to the Thai church.

Day 7 – Blessing the Land

Genesis 12:2 (NIV) I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.

Just as Abraham was developed by God into a blessing to the nations, so are we who inherited these promises.

One of the means of sharing the blessings of God to the people of the land is through prayer walk. During prayer walks, the missioners walk around the area of their ministry and observe the people and have a feel of the place. The missioners then ask from the Holy Spirit about what things that they need to pray about. The activity enables you to imbibe the atmosphere of the place while being enriched by the blessings that God relays to the people through you. In fact, prayer walks are one of the most integral part of Ate Carla's short term mission to Macau. 

Ate Carla's team was composed of married couples and singles. This grouping proved to be helpful in ministering to the age groups found in the local church. The younger team engaged the students in the various Macanese universities while the couples befriended the elder ones. The team also help in the launch of the church's newest building.

But what made an impression on her is the numerous prayer walks that they held during their brief time in Macau. It was summertime during their visit so dry heat took its toll during these long walks.

Still, the activity changed her perspective on how the Great Commission works. She can only wonder how Jesus and the apostles were able to minister in the same blistering heat without the aid of modern technology. She could only see how awesome God is on how He took care of  His Son during Jesus' brief stay in the world and how He still continues doing so for His children that share His Gospel.