A Devotional Life

Romans 1:1-15

            Mission work is tough. The opening of Paul's letter to the Roman church explains just how tough. He has been trying - for years! - to come to the Roman church. Unlike many of the recipients of Paul's letters, the Roman church was not established by Paul during his missionary journeys. So when Paul writes, it is not - as it so often is in other circumstances - like a father writing to a child. Instead, it is as two fellow disciples, sharing in the joy of their salvation in the Lord.

            Mission work today is much of the same. Today, the church does not so much go to a place to form a new church. Rather, it goes and checks in on the church that Jesus has already established there. I was reminded of this when talking with Rusty from First Pres Monongahela this past week. Rusty has made numerous trips to Ethiopia on behalf of Washington Presbytery. When Rusty goes, he doesn't go to tell our Ethiopian brothers and sisters what they need. He doesn't even really do any mission "projects" while there. Instead, he meets with as many of our fellow Christians as he can so that "we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith."

            This summer we're headed to Baltimore for our annual mission trip. We've opted to partner with The Center, which is a mission agency based out of Baltimore Presbytery, because they are offering us an opportunity to partner with churches there. Why is this important? Because often times short-term mission work is more of a detriment than a benefit to the recipients. I read an article recently about a church in Mexico City whose sanctuary was painted by visiting American missionaries. It was painted three times in the course of one summer! Can you imagine having our sanctuary disrupted three times in as many months by friendly youth from Mexico, Haiti, and China? I marvel at the graciousness of those Mexican Christians that they just didn't throw the third group out!

            No, Christian missions is not so much about establishing churches (because our theology teaches us that it is the Spirit who forms the church). Nor is it about doing "projects" (because we are called to love our neighbor, not reduce them to a task). Christian mission is about relationships from top to bottom. It starts with the relationship that God establishes with His creation and extends into the relationships we have with one another.

            Yet, you might ask, "Isn't there work to be done?" Of course there is. And when we travel to Baltimore, I don't doubt that we'll do plenty of work. But we're going mostly for the relationship. There is more work to be done than can be accomplished in a week. What we need, therefore, is a relationship with other churches and other Christians. We need these relationships because they become the hope we have that when we leave - with work left undone - we can be confident that Jesus Christ is still present and He is still at work. And we're going so that we might be mutually encouraged by one another.