Our Mission is Possible Wherever We Are

When you hear “mission”, maybe you think about Tom Cruise and his exploits in the Mission Impossible spy film series. Or, when you hear “mission”, you may think about missionaries in a third world country, dedicated to bringing lost souls to Christ. The truth is we are all called to a mission – right here or over there. God doesn’t value a far-off there more than an ordinary right here. Every there for us is someone else’s here.

Yes, some are called to go but most are called to stay and this is no lesser of a story to be living. If God is everywhere, and He tells us that He is, then He loves all the earth and we can serve Him in any corner of it -- including the one at the end of our own street. We are all missionaries because none of us are “home.” We are all in a foreign place, in a culture where we are not true citizens but wanderers. "Our citizenship is in heaven." (Philippians 3:20)

The good news is we can honor God in what is familiar to us. We can seek Him in the everyday sameness of our lives. We don't have to go anywhere but TO HIM in order for us to be useful in His Kingdom. For those called to step on a plane or boat, you go with the blessing of God. For those called to stay in a kitchen or a check-out line at a store or a conference room or a a desk in a class, you stay right where you are -- with the blessing of God.

“Missionary” simply means someone who has or is on a mission. If that’s the case, then we all bear that name. I’m by no means taking away the special care and honor that should be given to those for whom it is also an occupation. I’m just saying “Let’s not diminish the privilege we all have of being part of a great mission, too." You have been sent. I have been sent. We were sent the second the first spark of life flickered in our mother’s womb. To this earth. And now to wherever we are today.

Let’s not believe that there is a more “spiritual” location to be. Let’s never let our hearts be convinced God is not as fully here as He is on some distant continent. Instead let’s take off our shoes and declare that right here where we stand is holy ground, too. Because God is here -- in this moment. Perhaps even more miraculous, He is in us. God Himself is Who He wants us to bring wherever we are, wherever we go.

Do you want to know where God is asking you to serve and bless right now? You only need to look down at the one-foot square of humble, sacred earth beneath your feet. The only place on this spinning globe where both you and God are present in this moment. That's where we can always make a difference.

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5

We Stood on Holy Ground

Having spent the last 4 days at Camp Copass in Denton, TX with 79 beautiful “sisters in Christ” and experiencing God's peace in this away-from-it-all location, was what God ordered for us. I knew we were on HOLY GROUND when we arrived at the campus and this sign welcomed us: SHOW ME YOUR WAYS O LORD, Psalm 25:4. That is why we went there in the first place.

My word for today is: Holy Ground -- sacred grounds or areas; it is not necessarily that the ground, itself, is holy, rather, it is the presence of the Holy God that makes it holy.

That is why we went to Camp Copass – to be in the presence of our Holy God and come to know His ways even more. Finding ourselves in many occasions to see AND hear God’s ways enveloped us in His tangible love through “sisterhood”.

We often sign our emails or other notes as YSIC. One of the retreatants asked "What does YSIC mean?" It means "Your Sister in Christ". After all we are God's daughters and when His daughters get together, we are Sisters in Christ. We were single and married, young mothers and more mature mothers -- all living with daily opportunities to face conflict AND noise, who needed a break and refreshing, -- from careers, family dynamics, attending school, raising children, health, relational, and financial challenges, etc. And, in this place of quiet and stillness, we had the incredible opportunity to refresh, restore, and rejuvenate.

Serving as a one of the 39 team members and preparing for this retreat meant weekly meetings for 3-1/2 months , plus much study and prayer, and diligence to give those 40 retreatants a HOLY GROUND experience that had the potential of tremendously impacting their lives. Every time we met, we knew we were on HOLY GROUND, as we fellowshipped, prayed for each other and for the retreatants. Our Mission was accomplished – based on the many testimonies of those precious women who left this weekend transformed.

Here’s the best part of the retreat. We disconnected from the busy, fast-paced, hustle and bustle of everyday life. What does retreat mean? With an army, it means to withdraw from enemy forces, and maybe that army looks like the forces the enemy of our soul uses when we’re stressed, overloaded, under-appreciated, and facing fears and challenges. For us, “retreat” is better defined as withdrawing from the routines of life to go to a place of refreshment and revitalization, being able to rekindle and deepen our relationship with God. We get to leave behind usual distractions we all face, to have our faith deepened. as we look inward to the HOLY GROUNDS of God in our lives.

Before I left this HOLY GROUND yesterday morning, I took the time to drive around the campus and capture photos of this camp’s “rules for success”, God’s tools from His toolbox (His Word) and His faithful promises to us. Wherever we are – not just at a camp where the signs appear, but anywhere we will be standing on HOLY GROUND – because He is Emmanuel – God with us – and where He is, holy. Our homes, our places of work, our children’s school, the grocery store and the gas station. All are places where the Spirit of God is, because we show up at all those places – and, then, SO DOES HE! In our hearts and minds, we can "check-out" of the routine and experience HOLY GROUNDS -- any time and in any place. He'll meet us there. I KNOW! I'm there right now!