Mobilizing the Next Generation
Jesse Mobilizing at the OMF booth at ICOM (International Conference on Missions) in Lexington, KY
So many great and, Lord-willing, life-changing conversations...
When I was young, idealistic, and perhaps just a bit naive, I used to think of missions in terms of what God wanted to do through me. Now that I'm older (approaching 50), still idealistic, and a little bit less naive, I've learned to think of missions more in terms of what younger people God wants me to mentor to raise up as disciples and the next generation of spiritual leaders and missionaries.
Paul advised Timothy about this concept in 2 Tim. 2:2 - "And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others" (NIV). Notice that there are four generations within this one verse: Paul, Timothy, reliable people, and 'others.' This is the kind of multiplication of disciples which took the Gospel from Jesus to twelve ordinary fishermen and tax collector-type people, to changing the world. This is the kind of multiplication which transformed Bayanhongor, Mongolia, the little provincial capital where I served from 2000-2002 from one little tiny church in the entire sprawling province to a network of about 20 house churches several years later... Lord, may you work through the people we met at the OMF booth to multiply their lives and impact the unreached.