Dear Church Family,
Lately, I have been contemplating what it truly means to live missionally. In fact, my computer doesn’t even recognize "missionally" as a correct word! So, for my computer’s sake, what does it mean to live a life on mission? What is your mission? At the end of your life, will you be able to say that you lived a life worth living? Did you accomplish all that you set out to do? Do you have regrets?
James White, one of the pioneers of the Adventist movement, said on his deathbed that he wished he had preached, talked, and written more about Jesus. It wasn’t that the gospel wasn’t at the heart of all he did, but had he perhaps become too consumed with the administrative side of things? As the movement grew, did he lose sight of what God was calling him to? I don’t know, and I don’t want to speculate about what was in his heart. But what I do know is that, in the end, the only thing that truly mattered to him was Jesus.
When my time comes, I want to know that I lived my life completely on mission. I am still discovering what that looks like. But I do know this: the way we have structured life—through time, culture, consumerism, and comfort—has often made it about what is easiest, most convenient, and least disruptive. And I realize I have been living that way too.
Jesus is coming soon! And when He appears in the clouds, I won’t care about the things that I sometimes make into huge deals here and now. All that will matter is Jesus. All I want to care about is Jesus. That’s it. He is not someone to be confined to a box that only spills into my church life. I want Him to spill into every space in my life, to be first in everything. And I trust that as I make Him my priority, He will take care of all else.
This is my desire. Will you pray for me—that as I surrender, this it will become a reality in my life?
Thank you.
- Pastor Jen