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Wednesday, February 1, 2012

How Can They?

It has been too long.
Too long since I have blogged, yet it has not been far from my mind. God has blessed our little family with so much possibility and though much is still unknown or set in stone, it is all too exciting to not share! Alas, this is not the time nor the post to do so. Let that suspense lead you into prayer for our family and ministry Cwtrials.

In reading through Romans 10 today during my precious almost-two-years-old nap time, I was bursting with joy and "amens"! With all that I have strategically planned for blogging, to begin next month, THIS could NOT wait. It is His word that interrupts my grace-filled life, and that I will not hinder.

Let me just whisper to you some of the history behind this and why my heart is so struck-
ever since I was a young girl, the Lord has impressed upon my heart a passion for missions. I married a man who loves the Lord and together we desperately seek to see Him glorified through our lives, our family, our ministry. We just celebrated a beautiful weekend with a friend who poured into us hope and truth and vision for our unique ministry. He's been where we are and God has brought him to a point now where he can humbly pour into our lives from the wisdom he has received. What a blessed time we are still processing through!

My prayer, written out on a piece of paper and again in my journal goes like this "My hearts desire and prayer to God for the (Turkish, Albanian, Greek, Zimbabwean, New Englanders, Napali) is that they may be saved!" It is Romans 10:1 and when I skimmed this first verse yesterday, I was stunned to see Paul's letter to the Romans, praying for the Israelites, to be MY very prayer for these people groups (listed in no particular order).

It later goes on to say in verse 14 &15, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?'" (inside quote from Isaiah 52:7)

How can they?...call on the one they have not believed in, if they have not heard, if nobody has preached it to them? How can they preach unless they are sent? "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17)

Don't get the wrong idea, dismiss that picture in your mind of stoic missionaries to foreign lands, dressed and living as if they never left the US, not willing to get down in the dirt and work with the people they are among, or standing on soap boxes with bullhorns preaching only condemnation.
That is not the Gospel. That is NOT the example Christ set for us, His humble life displayed throughout scripture, befriending the adulteress and washing the dirty feet of His companions... a job meant for the "lowly".

The fact is, the truth screaming here and now even in 2012 with all of the technology at our fingertips if you are reading this... There are still people in our world, in our own country that have never heard the Gospel message, never seen a "little-Jesus" in action. How can they believe if they have never heard?

We don't need to travel to foreign lands or live among the Refugees and immigrants here in America to preach the gospel to ears that have never heard. The question is, if you are a follower of Christ, are you ready and willing to share it? Are you reading the Bible to "know your stuff", are you praying, pleading on behalf of those around you, are you living it out in your everyday life and not just at church or among certain people? Truth is, do you believe the Gospel message for yourself? That Christ came and died to give you new life. For you.

Go ahead and sing the song "Jesus loves me this I know..." But do you know that even if it was just YOU He was dying for, He would have still died. It is so easy to be caught up in "Jesus died for everyone" and follow that in our heads by telling ourselves lies that we aren't good enough. Honestly, there isn't anything you could ever do to make Him love you more, or love you any less. He loves you.

I say this all because I am learning to embrace this for myself. I'm not who I was 3-4 years ago. I was so eager to share the Gospel, but I wasn't believing its truth for myself and when those Christians weren't around I sure wasn't acting like it either.

Learning to live in God's grace, accepting it and believing it is the first step to living a life of freedom. It is where the road to living a Gospel-filled life begins, enabling you to truly live and giving you the tools to share the Truth of our Life Giver. Embracing the message of Christ, through His word, equipping us to preach it "so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." (Romans 10:4)