I recently read about a Thom Rainer survey that measures the level of expectations under which many of you serve.
Church members are asked to write down everything a pastor should do each week. Then they’re asked to estimate the amount of time pastors should spend doing it. A facilitator lists the weekly tasks, records the largest amount of time estimated for each task, and totals the amount of time it would take to accomplish them.
The author remarks that in all his years of conducting this survey, he’s never had a weekly total of less than 100 hours!
We want to give you the night off because we know how hard you work!
The missionary task is bigger than any of us. Let’s take a moment to rest, collaborate, and refuel for the task ahead.
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The Task Unfinished
I shot an email to several of our mission leaders, asking them to share about their missions endeavors. Here’s some of what I learned.
One church in Houston has committed to sharing the gospel with every household within a 5-mile radius of their church building.
Another is forming partnerships with other churches to reach the top 7 unreached people groups in our city.
One of our Vietnamese churches regularly equips its members to share the gospel both here and overseas. This church even provides training so its members can share the gospel in Spanish.
Another church regularly trains its members in gospel conversations and sends them out to Houston’s hardest to reach peoples and places.
Beyond that, I know 8 churches have joined UBA’s Sending Pathways initiative that equips churches to identify, equip, send, and support new pastors, church planters, church replanters, and cross-cultural missionaries. This is no small endeavor.
These churches all have one thing in common: leaders doing the hard work of the Great Commission, just like you.
Global and Local Impact
And your hard work makes a significant kingdom impact globally and locally.
Globally:
One church mobilizes more than 3,000 mission volunteers a year. 200 of these volunteers travel internationally.
Our churches travel to remote areas like the jungles of Papua New Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the foothills of the Himlayas. One church’s partnership with a mission organization has led to thousands of gospel conversations and more than 900 decisions for Christ. Other mission teams have planted churches in Vietnam, Cambodia, and the Ivory Coast
Our churches are active locally, as well.
One church is building a partnership between the International Mission Board (IMB) and other churches in the area to reach our Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and Sikh neighbors.
Two churches take local outreach to another level. One recently distributed more than 2 million pounds of food and $2 million of in kind gifts. The other distributed more 3 million pounds of food and almost $1 million in financial assistance.
A church on the south side of town runs a camp for churches in the inner city. This camp has witnessed more than ten thousand baptisms over the last 25 years.
These congregations represent what many of you do on a smaller but no less significant scale.
And behind each accomplishment lie countless amazing stories of God’s redeeming love. Let me share just one.
A Task Worth Doing
One of our churches has built a partnership with the IMB. They sent their first missionary apprentice overseas in 2023. He spent 4 months with a local church planter, trekking through some of the most unreached regions in the world.
On one particular day, they approached a couple of men hard at work. Noon was fast approaching. They thought the two men might be willing to take a break and listen to the gospel. They introduced themselves and asked if they could share about Jesus. The two men gave a look of surprise and, handing a pair of earbuds to the church planter said, “You mean this Jesus?”
Somehow, these men had gained access to praise and worship music in their language! They men said, “Sure, we’d love to hear more about Jesus. He sounds like a great guy.” Both men gave their lives to Christ.
Let's refuel for the task ahead
As you know, you’ve been called to an exhausting work. God has given you an endless burden for a work that will never be accomplished in your lifetime. There’s always the next village. There’s always another neighborhood. And you do all this work with volunteers–volunteers who have busy (if not chaotic) schedules and sometimes unrealistic expectations of you.
So, like I said earlier, we want to give you the night off, a night to thank you and thank God for the great things he has done.
We’ll provide the evening meal and some wholesome entertainment by Christian comedian Jason Earls. Bring your spouse. Bring your mission leaders—both staff and volunteers. Come and enjoy an evening of celebration on us.
As the Senior Consultant for Sending Pathways, Cris Alley helps support the local church in thinking and acting like missionaries.
Photo by Kimi Albertson on Unsplash
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