Pastor’s Column 5/31/2026
PASTOR’S COLUMN
5 They even did more than we had hoped for their first action was to give themselves to rhe Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.”
2 Corinthians 8:5, NLT
“Missions Begins With Us!!”
“Extending help to others is not as cumbersome and difficult as some people would imagine. The activity of helping others involves the hands and feet, but thetrue reason for the ministry of missions can be found only in our devotion to God. The desire to serve the Lord cancels any human motives that lead to self-glory or selfish ambition. Any motive to help others that excludes inspiration from God will open the door to frustration, fatigue, and disdain for the people we are called to assist. The Apostle Paul had been promised financial support from the Christians in Corinth to help the poor in Jerusalem and the Asian Minor. Sadly human motives and spiritual immaturity supplanted the plan, When Paul reminded the Corinthians of their loyalty to God and their mission efforts, he cited the Christians in Macedonia as an example of how we should be prepared to give and assistothers. Paul noted the people in that region were less fortunate than the Christians in Corinth, but they gave “beyond what was expected of them.” The difference, the apostle said was, “… their first action was to give themselves to the Lord, and tous, just as God wanted them to do.” Giving our total self over to God makes a difference in our efforts, and in accomplishing the task God sets before us. When I visited and ministered in India in the late 1990’s I witnessed the most effective ministry of sharing the Good News and helping others in a high impoverished area. The people who gave the most of their time and resources had the least, but God smiled on that ministry in a manner I have rarely seen since. Lives were changed and transformed in a miraculous way, The question should be asked, “Whatchanges could occur if I were to give myself to the Lord?” This is how true missions begin. Jesus told each and all of His followers to become witnesses of His truth. The Holy Spirit can truly lead us!
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