Defending the Faith 3: Where Should I Go?

Maybe this isn't a post best suited to be a "defending the faith" post, however, even before you defend your faith, you need to know where to start.

To share your faith, you don't have to be a missionary to Africa. You don't even have to go with your youth group to Mexico or downtown Los Angeles. You don't need to stand on street corners or in front of Planned Parenthood clinics. Yet . . . the Bible tells Christians to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations . . ." (Matthew 28:19) So where do we do this if we're not traveling to Africa, Mexico, or L.A?

True, God does call some people to go forth as a missionary to foreign nations and preach the message of the Kingdom of God. But He doesn't ask everyone to travel to share the good news of Jesus Christ. I'm sure you've heard it said that the biggest mission field is the streets of America, and there's never been a truer statement. For example, my family lives in a rural area about an hour away from a town, and my dad is the pastor of the local church. Years ago a church in the local town decided to help support my family as missionaries. We were surprised when they informed us of this. Were we traveling to share the gospel? Were we dwelling among people who speak a different language? No. Yet this church considered us missionaries. God has given us a local mission field, reaching out to our friends and neighbors in this little community.

Any Christian could be supported as a missionary in this sense. You don't have to be a pastor in order to have your own special mission field God has given you. Are you attending school? Shine your light with your fellow students and tell them about your best friend, Jesus. (Yes, students do still have the Constitutional right to talk about Jesus Christ in schools.) Do you work long hours every day? Even if your workplace doesn't permit you to discuss Jesus with coworkers, you can show Him to them in the manner that you handle situations and your work ethic. Are you standing in line at the grocery store? Maybe in that moment, your mission field is the cashier or person standing behind you. Sitting in a restaurant, do you see a girl walk in with a broken arm? Perhaps God is calling you to go pray for her.

Always be on the lookout for "God moments" and people that He puts in your life. Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit living in you and watch for opportunities. Get involved in outreach events your church hosts. Volunteer with a local food bank or Samaritan's Purse. This summer a few of my friends and I will be staffing at summer camps for youth and teaching them about Jesus.There are so many places and chances to share your faith with others. Always be on the lookout.

Don't let your life fall into a monotonous pattern; find people God wants you to pray for and bless. There's always someone whose life could be changed by you listening to the Holy Spirit prompting you to start a conversation with and pray for them. Maybe you are one of the people God has asked to go to New Zealand as a missionary, but more often than not, God has called you to be a minister to those around you right now. God has put everyone in your path for a reason. Whether it's a friend, family member, or coworker who you see every day, or whether it's the person in line at Disneyland you might never see again, be watchful for opportunities God places before you and listen for His voice.

Some of Jesus' last words here on earth were instructions to the disciples (and to all followers):
". . . you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." (Acts 1:8) Be a missionary to your family, in your hometown, and in every place God puts you. (As a side note, Christians are not always called to defend their faith, but they are always commanded to share their faith. This verse says to be a witness—to tell people about their faith, but not force conversions.)

So where should you go to share the Kingdom of Heaven with people? Maybe to a foreign land, but also consider your next door neighbor.

P.S. This post is inspired by plans to go into a local event this weekend as part of a team seeking God encounters where we will witness for Christ. Prayers for God to soften people's hearts are much appreciated!

Off to Camp!

Last week, my sister and I went to a Christian camp, called LIFE Camp, by Lake Lopez. The goal of this camp is to help kids live in faith effectively. The fruits of the spirit was the theme this year and our “challenge passage” (a passage out of the Bible for the kids to try to memorize as well as the daily and theme verses.) was Galatians 5.Our mom and dad dropped us off Monday morning and picked us up Saturday. Although it was a long time to be away from our parents and home, my sister and I had a marvelous time growing closer to God and having fun.

I like everything about Life Camp especially just growing nearer to the Lord. In the morning, the first of our three classes is Missionary where you learn about one missionary all week. This year it was Dr. Carl Becker, missionary/doctor to the people in mid- Africa– especially the Pigmy people. Our second class of the morning, Biography, was taught by the director. We discovered the lives of a different person every day. A few examples are Joni Ericson Tada, Eric Liddel, George Washington Carver, and Jim Elliot. Our last class was Bible where we learned about Ruth, Paul, Joseph, David, and more. In the evening we had chapel with a different speaker every night.

Life Camp offers lots of fun, active activities. After lunch girls go swimming for about an hour to an hour and a half. Directly afterward is field games where we play multiple different games such as: capture the flag, belly bumpers, soccer, dodge ball and that is only scratching the surface of all the games. Soon afterward, everyone enjoys what is probably most people's favorite activity– free time! At this time the campers are allowed to do just about anything. The only hitch is that if you want to go outside the boundaries or into the creek that flows by, you must have a staff person who is willing to accompany you or at least keep you in their sight. During some free times the staff have organized activities for the campers. One day there was a gold hunt in the creek where whoever wanted to go could learn how to pan for gold and the likely places gold would be. Another exciting expedition was when a group of campers hiked a ways up the mountain to search for fossils. Most kids found one– or two– or even more! I was in the category of “even more”. I found two rocks but combined in the two rocks was a total of three clam fossils. I was given two more rocks with fossils, their total– six plus!!! The last activity at the end of the day is “night games”. During “night games” we mostly play “blob tag” which is similar to family tag. The only other game that I can remember playing at night was capture the flag.

My LIFE Camp cabin group.

Everything about Life Camp was a lot of fun- so much fun that is- that I can't choose which thing was the funnest. I was blessed to be in a small cabin with only three other girls and one fantastic counselor. Between night time Devotions and Missions, swimming and free time, snack and dinner, everything was so fabulous. I feel like I grew closer to God and will be able to be better at the fruits of the spirit. Thank you, Jake, for putting on Life Camp so faithfully each year and for being interactive with the campers! Thanks everyone who sent me and my sister letters at Life Camp! It meant a lot!