by Eddie Lyons
Jesus spoke words that would forever define the mission of his church just before he ascended into heaven, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The church of Jesus was to be both local and global from its inception. For a local church to be fully functioning, it must have a global outreach. This worldwide mission focus must be a part of the DNA of a church from its birth. Sometimes so much goes into getting a church planted, it is tempting to postpone the focus of world missions. Jesus did not tell his first followers to phase in this global focus. He put them on it from the beginning.
Within the Baptist Bible Fellowship, the focus is on foreign missions even while we work to plant churches. One of the greatest characteristics of how we do missions is a plan to get real live missionaries in front of the people of our churches.
I know deputation can be long and grueling for our missionaries. It is also a great way for people in our churches to establish relationships with the missionaries they support. When our people hear the stories of missionaries who have left all to follow God’s calling, it can have a profound affect. Missions that is driven by relationships is powerful. We do not support a program, but real people whose stories we have heard.
I have heard people say things like “This is the first time I actually have met a missionary.” We have had people surrender to become missionaries because of these personal encounters. I appreciate our missionaries for their sacrifice and dedication as they minister to people in our churches. The personal connection deputation provides is a gift our missionaries give to us.