Why Foreign Missions?

Why foreign missions?

As a pastor of a young church plant I get asked that question all the time “why foreign missions?”  I think for some, they are trying to look out for us because they know it costs money and at a church plant money isn’t something you have an abundance of.   Others have seen how missions have functioned in America and are kind of burn out on that model. 

“I mean isn’t there enough people for you to reach in Wichita that you don’t have to go to the other side of the world?”   When it comes to missions it isn’t local or foreign it’s both, but we need to do missions different.  Missions isn’t about your denomination recognizing you, or you having a cultural experience.  It isn’t you feeling sorry for someone, or doing nice things.  Missions is about you caring about people and you loving them and you making them part of your family.  Missions is about believing in people enough that we trust them to reach their own groups.  Missions is about us being Paul and taking Timothy’s under our wing then send them out to do what God has put in their heart to do.

You see when you connect missions to the mandate that Jesus left us with “make disciples” it looks similar no matter where we are in the world.  The church that I lead Restoration Church has a huge passion for missions local and global.  This year about 30% of our tithes and offering have gone to missions.  We take people on trips and let them be used by God and challenge them to come back and let God use them here at home.  Our kid’s ministry partners with kid’s ministries in other parts of the world, and our youth ministry, women’s ministry etc…  I have a skype meeting with a pastor of our first partner church once a week, so we can plan and pray for one another.  We are not coming in as the rich westerners and just throwing money at projects and telling people what to do.  We are partnering with people so they can reach their own community and making them self sufficient so they don’t have to rely on us and they can help another church do the same.

I am not naïve enough to think that we are the only church who does this.  Many churches do this but watching this video reminded me why we do this. 

I was talking to a pastor friend a few months ago (and he pastors a very large church) he was wondering if we were doing ok?  I mean we are a little over a year and a half old and we haven’t out grown out building yet.  And with me being apart of the mega church model for a while everyone thought that’s what we would do.  I explained to him God has stripped me of my pride and I have zero desire to be famous or have thousands of people.  I do have a desire to make disciples who make disciples.  If we continue to do that we will grow, maybe not as fast as some but that’s not my assignment and I’m sold on what God has assigned me to.  I am ok if I never pastor 10,000 or have my name on bookshelves but when I die I do want to have a kingdom reach of 100,000 I do want to change the world.  But I desire for God to be worshiped here locally and globally.  I desire for people to get to experience the God that I know and love.  That’s why we do missions local and global.