"Why Missions? A Response"
By Rev. David McKinley, Stephanie Bucher and Katie Hayes

On Sunday August 21, 2005, we had a special treat for our sermon time. Two of our young people reported on the short-term overseas mission trips they took with New Life Student Ministries. Katie Hayes is a junior at Penn State University, where she is studying International Politics. She served the Lord in La Acequia, Honduras May 14-23rd.
Stephanie Bucher is a senior at Lock Haven University, where she is majoring in Elementary and Special Education. She ministered in Belize July 18-29th.

The following excerpts are from their presentations with a conclusion entitled, The Reason for Missions.

Stephanie Bucher:
Good morning. Last month I had the opportunity to spend a couple of weeks on a mission trip to Belize. I went with 9 other people. The group was made up of Lock Haven University students and the father of one of the girls. Our team leader, Janessa, used to live in Belize with her family where they were missionaries. Her father is a pastor and has worked with many of the people that we met while we were there. Janessa and her father worked together to put this trip into action. Our partner on the Belizean side was a pastor based out of San Ignacio but has founded other churches in Belmopan and Spanish Lookout. His name is Rubin. His wife and daughters provided all of our meals and he helped us purchase all of the supplies that we would need for our trip. He was also a very good tour guide and had a quirky sense of humor.

Before I start talking about our trip, I'd like to tell you a little about the culture and the way of life that we experienced in Belize. Belize is a small country in Central America, and if you're looking at a map, it's below Mexico but to the right of Guatemala. The population is about 241,000. When many of you think of Belize, you may immediately imagine white sandy beaches or clear blue water, well we weren't anywhere near the beach. We stayed in a city called San Ignacio, about 10-15 miles from the Guatemalan border. English is the official language of Belize, although many, if not all, speak Spanish. The pace of a normal day is very different compared to what it is in the States. It is very laid back and not uncommon for someone to be 30 minutes late when picking you up or for a friend to knock on your door to visit but end up staying for a week. We often joked that we were on Belizean time if our ride was late to pick us up.

The food was amazing. Rice and beans is a staple meal on the lunch and dinner table as well as chicken that is spiced up with some Belizean Heat hot sauce. Some of my favorite foods were homemade tortilla wraps, the many different chicken dishes, and all of the fruit. We had many chances to try exotic fruits and meals that we've never heard of before. We were definitely fed very well and we all had huge appetites. We were not able to drink the water so our beverage choices were Kool-aid, bottled water, or soda.

The exchange rate there is $1 U.S to $2 Belize. There were many family owned grocery stores, restaurants, and other businesses as well as farms and open markets where you could buy produce and an assortment of other items. As a side note, the price of gas per gallon was around $9. That would be between $4 and $5 here. The poverty level there is quite high. Many of the houses are one room, comparable to the size of our bedrooms at home. And all of the chores were done by hand, including washing the dishes, washing dirty laundry and cutting the lawn with a machete. The cities that we were in were very dirty. There was a lot of trash laying on the roads and in people's yards. Many of the houses needed a lot of repair work or needed to be finished. But Belize is also the home of beautiful and unique scenery. Palm trees, banana trees, hills, and mountains cover the countryside and you can see far off into the horizon. The stars were out by the millions and the sunsets and sunrises were unforgettable.

Over the two-week span we spent in Belize, we were able to construct an office that Rubin and his associate pastor will share and a computer center that will be open to the community once their church raises enough money to buy computers. Part of our team painted the inside of a house and built a shed as well. At Rubin's church we shared our testimonies with the congregation, performed a skit and sang some songs. Some of the youth members of the church taught us some songs in Spanish. Our down time was spent playing pick-up soccer games in the park next to Rubin's house. These were always sure to attract kids from all over the neighborhood. We also got a chance to do some sight seeing, exploring, and a lot of journaling.

While we did get a lot accomplished, we also hit some potholes along the way. We incurred some injuries and illnesses, had some trouble with our tape measures, you know the saying "Always measure twice and cut once." Well, we had to cut quite a few times. One of our construction assignments was stopped before it could get started because of political issues. We were working in a crooked room when we built the office and computer center, so of course our lines looked even more crooked. But through this entire trip God led the way. He was the foreman at our construction site.

Our team of 10 fit together like a puzzle. We laughed, cried, and worshipped together. We learned a lot from this trip about each other, ourselves, and God. God taught me many things through this trip. I really struggled with being judgmental and comparing the lives of people in Belize to the lives of people in the U.S. Patience was also hard because the atmosphere is so laid back and I'm the kind of person that likes to have things planned out and done on time. I think that God has shown me that there really is no reason to complain, judge, or be jealous because He has given us everything that we need already. I learned that I need to trust God more with my life and my future and that I really need to focus my thoughts and my heart more on Him than on earthly things.

A few different ways of living have been illustrated by this trip and I've learned and am continuing to work on being content, happy, joyful, and comforted in whatever I have. He's shown me the value of family and how much they really mean and to love them unconditionally no matter what.

Going to Belize was most certainly a life changing experience. I know that those words, "Life changing experience", can have many different meanings. But seeing, feeling, and hearing God work in the lives of others and in your own life is amazing. You don't even need to go somewhere like Belize to experience that. You can be a missionary in your own back yard.

In closing, I'd like to share with you our team passage. It was our motto for the trip. It comes from Colossians 3:12, 23-24, "Therefore as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience…whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."

Katie Hayes:
For me, Honduras was a first step: the metaphorical "testing the waters" of evangelical missionary work. I have previously been on 3 work camp experiences with the church a long with various small missionary day trips and things of that nature. But, all of those trips were mainly about exemplary evangelism; helping a community or specific person and letting God's light shine through you. In this way people are attracted to the goodness in you and desire to know where it comes from. I always got a lot out of helping others in need and loved that people knew that I was doing it for God's glory. There's a lot of good in that sort of missionary work and I don't mean to demean it in any way.

However, the Honduras mission, along with many other overseas missions, requires a more confrontational approach to sharing the gospel. Setting an example is always a necessity, but in remote places like La Acequia, sometimes you will encounter people who have never even heard of Jesus Christ. That's why sharing the gospel directly with the people becomes so important. As Christians we have been commissioned to spread the good Word to the world, making sure that no person is left without the knowledge of Jesus' love and sacrifice. I do admit that I was a bit wary about this type of evangelism before going to Honduras. I wasn't sure if I was "cut out" to talk to people directly about God. I was also afraid that people would reject what I had to say and that somehow this would be "failing" God. However, our mission group prayed a lot about God opening the hearts of the Hondurans and for Him to take our words and turn them into His. Something that I learned from this experience is that God is everywhere already and he doesn't "need" us to do His work, but He allows us to help.

God did a lot of amazing things on our trip to Honduras. Our group was comprised of 15: 6 girls and 9 guys, most of us very opinionated and ready to lead. However, before the trip we also left it in God's hands to control our hard-headedness and help us to be "flexible." We all wore rubber bands on our wrists to remind us of this. Though we were all friends from school already, we were surprised to find just how well we all got along. We had no scuffs, no individuals wanting to manage things for themselves, and no problems organizing and getting things done, even when things didn't go as planned. In fact, our first day was the first real test in the face of uncertainty. We had planned to make approximately 200 hygiene kits with the donated items we received. And after about 70, we realized we were completely out of plastic bags to fill. But just like Jesus feeding the 10 thousand, God made the plastic we could find multiply into 130 more handmade "satchels." Well, maybe not exactly like that, but it still impressed us! We were able to bless every household in La Acequia with at least one bundle of bare necessities: multivitamins, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste, and more.

Our first day of delivering the kits was incredible. It blew my expectations out of the water. Everyone welcomed us into their house and willingly listened to what we had to say. Luckily we had two fluent Spanish speakers with us so we were able to split in two and cover more ground. One of our first stops was with a woman named Maricela and her daughter Marlenis. She hugged us all enthusiastically proclaiming that she was so thankful for our group being there. She said over and over what a "Bendición", blessing, we were. She had really been struggling with her faith for a while and wanted to speak with Johnny, our leader, if he had time. But in the mean time our small group of 3 asked her if we could pray for her. I could never recount what words were said and I would be lying if I said I understood all of the conversation with God, but I do know that I didn't need to be fluent in Spanish to feel the Holy Spirit working in that home. The other non-Spanish speaker with us felt the same way. He knew less Spanish than I did, yet we were both fervently agreeing with our translator with proclamations of "si Señor," - yes Lord - and "por favor Jesus" - please Jesus. I knew the hurt this woman was feeling, though I didn't know exactly why. I truly believe in the power of the Holy Spirit to overcome all boundaries. Language, culture, class; whatever the blockade, He can break it down and find commonality between Christians or for his good work. Maricela and her family had been struggling so much for money the past 6 months that they had to take the donated money for her daughter's education and use it to buy food. This is not uncommon in La Acequia. Through all of this, I saw in Maricela a faith that is stronger than my own; despite the fact that I am never in want. My parents are capable of providing not only food, shelter and clothing for me, but also education and frivolous "extras" that we as Americans take for granted. I really gained an appreciation for faith and thankfulness to God through every circumstance in life. I know that I need to constantly try to be grateful for every little thing I have, because for some people, that's all they have.

The people we talked to were very receptive of what we had to say. And those who didn't seem as interested were at least respectful of our opinion and courteously invited us into their homes. I think Americans have a lot to learn from the poorer parts of this world. We are much too selfish and concerned with formality. In Honduras the people don't shut their houses out to anyone. They are always ready and willing to invite you in, no matter the state of their house. When you live in a city where food is your family's main concern, little things like vacuuming and tidiness don't seem to matter as much. In fact, no houses even had need for a vacuum. Many households were built on the dirt ground and those blessed enough to afford a cement floor only had to sweep about 300 square feet of space. In spite of all of this, the La Acequians were always beyond happy to invite us into their homes and offer us a seat to rest our feet. They also never turned you away simply because they didn't feel they had time to listen.

Most nights there was some sort of church service, in fact a lot of the town activities are centered on the church. People fellowship all of the time and encourage each other in whatever way they can; singing, praying and sharing stories. For 4 days we also had a vacation bible school for every kid that wanted to come and have some fun learning about Jesus. Our theme was John 15:5… "He is the vine, we are the branches." And most of our crafts, songs and activities revolved around that. Kids colored in pictures of fruit and crosses and we made a large mural on the front wall of the church, something the kids could be proud of and something to make the sanctuary a bit more colorful. We were worried that some of the kids would try to steal the crayons we had because those are one of those little "extras" we in America take for granted. It is not uncommon for the kids to be extremely greedy when treats or gifts are handed out. However, not one was taken. Every kid was eager to prove that they were honest and trustworthy.

I think spending time with the children and the youth was the most rewarding part of my journey. Just to see how much love they have for strangers that they met only a few days ago is incredible. They followed us around all day, holding our hands and playing games with us. Most of them, even the little ones, were patient with our attempts to speak Spanish. It didn't even matter to them if you couldn't speak Spanish at all, they just wanted to be around you and be loved by you. This trip also taught me that giving love to people you don't know is not a hard thing. I would be surprised to hear of a person who doesn't fall in love with the children and people of La Acequia. And I think the same applies to other missionary fields. We were there on a mission for God and I believe he filled us with love for them. At all of our night meetings we would discuss ways we could help them out more; provide them with more monetary support, somehow get them a permanent medical professional in the town, or train one of their own to be a doctor, and make sure that every kid had a chance to go to school above the elementary level. There is still a lot of work to be done in Honduras, but God was there before us and is still there working in the hearts of the La Acequians to this day. I'm confident that he's continuing to bless the Christians in that town so that they can bless others. I still feel a great deal of love for the people we helped and I can't wait to go back next year. Overseas missions really give you a chance to experience just how powerful God's presence can be in an uncertain situation. He has control over everything and will make a way for the missionaries to connect with and talk to the people, even when there is a language barrier. Our God really is an awesome God.

Rev. David McKinley:
It has been a pleasure to have Katie and Stephanie report on their mission trips to Belize and Honduras. Their willingness to go is commendable, as well as this church's support of them. But why do such a thing? Didn't Katie and Stephanie have something better to do with their summer vacations? I guess a bigger question would be why should we, as a church, be interested in overseas missions? I would like for us to consider that question for the next few minutes. I believe our answer can be found in God's statement to the Israelites in Isaiah 42:6. In this declaration, we find The Reason for Missions. We first see that…

I. WE MUST PARTICIPATE IN MISSIONS BECAUSE GOD IS GREAT.
Isaiah 42:6 I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, And I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations…. The term LORD is the special name God uses for Himself. It is Jehovah or Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel. It is used throughout the book of Isaiah, describing God as Israel's help, their everlasting rock, their righteousness, their keeper and their redeemer. It was synonymous with a proactive God who created and sustained a people for Himself to minister to the world.

The good news for the Christian is that everything God promised to be to the Israelites, He promises to us. He is still the same proactive God that is about the business of changing and transforming lives. Jesus' ministry was not passive in nature. Rather, He was an active Savior, as He sought out such people as Zaccheus the tax collector. Upon hearing his confession, Christ said, Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." This same great God saw that redemption could only be accomplished through giving Himself away.

It is humbling for me to think that the God of this universe gave Himself up for my salvation. When I did not have the mind to help myself. When my own behavior contributed to my self-destruction, Christ came in order to set me free. If this does not speak of a great God, I don't know what does! And because God was concerned about me, I must be concerned about those who have yet to hear about him. And that leads us to our second lesson. We must participate in missions not only because God is great, but also…

II. WE MUST PARTICIPATE IN MISSIONS BECAUSE THE NEED IS GREAT.
In Isaiah 42:6, Israel was called by God to be a light to the nations. The verb is natan, which means to give, put, set. It gives the very reason why Israel existed, to be a light to the nations. The Hebrew term means light. Here, it is metaphorical for moral or spiritual light, which is really God's intention for the church. It was God's original intention for the nation of Israel, a nation of missionaries to minister to a lost and dying world. But unfortunately, Israel became parochial; it became arrogant, and corrupted due to the presence of sin.

But so as not to have His plan dependant on frail human hands, God sent His eternal Son, Jesus Christ, to fulfill that role of moral and spiritual light. Mary and Joseph were reminded of this when the prophet Simeon took the baby Jesus in his arms and prayed in Luke 2:29, Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.

God appointed His people as this because the world needed a light. It was undoubtedly because the world is a place in darkness. God says that the world is dark. A key to the motivation for missions is a right diagnosis of the world. The world is not in a state of neutrality. There is no inherent goodness in the hearts of men. Rather, the condition of the world is one in which it is in desperate need of redemption and salvation. This is the testimony of Scripture as 1 John 5:19 states, We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. What's more is that Jesus came into this world with the understanding that mankind at its very core is morally and spiritually dark. Jesus said in John 12:46, I have come as light into the world, that everyone who believes in Me may not remain in darkness.

Outside of the Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City, there is a large cathedral-looking church with a huge lighted sign that reads, Jesus Died For Our Sins. Why is such a sign placed where it is? It is because there is a desperate need to be reminded of the love of God in Christ. Just last month in Kansas City, a woman tried to drown herself in the moat alongside a Riverboat casino after losing over $115,000 at the casino over the past few years. She had been convicted of stealing from her jobs in the past and had to pay restitution. People need the Lord, in order to be rescued from themselves. What greater act of atrocity can we commit as Christians than to diminish the cause of Christ in the conversion of the Gentiles?

According to a U.S. News and World Report poll, three quarters of Americans believe that we were on a spiritual and moral decline in this country. In order to reverse this, it could be that the Christians in this world need to recover their missionary mentality? And who knows if you are not the best missionary to those around you. Has not God called you and I to be salt and light, carrying Christ to a lost and dying world?

Jesus came to convert sinners. If this wasn't so, why did He say in John 8:12, I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life. It is with this rescue mentality that God calls us to participate in foreign missions. God does not exist for our selfish comfort or just to make us have an easier life or feel better as we make our way through it. Rather, He calls us to go and tell others. Christianity has been described as one beggar telling another where to find bread. This was the reason why Dr. Drake and Andrea left the comfort of family and friends to live in the Netherlands. It is the same reason why Tui Shishak educates the tribal people of the Nagaland and Manipur states of Eastern India. It is because the need is great! But also that God is great! And as Jesus died and rose again, He enlisted His followers to bear His light to that same lost and dying world. Let us pray that God would help us to be everything He wants us to be! Amen.