I had a speaking engagement today so my posting is coming later than normal. I had the privilege to share at a Friendship Tea at a local church. The message the Lord put on my heart is one we can all learn from. It is based on Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
When people read this verse, they tend to rest their eyes on “to the ends of the earth” and view this verse as a call into missions overseas. This verse calls us all to missions, but it isn’t limited to overseas missions. In fact, Jerusalem is the starting point. Jesus told the disciples to begin there. Jerusalem was where they were at the time- their home. Then He called them to branch out a little farther and then a little farther until they were investing to the ends of the earth.
As Christians we focus on serving God outside of our home and we forget our first mission field is the home. I’m not saying we shouldn’t go overseas and serve the Lord in short term or long term missions. I love overseas missions and have been to Africa multiple times. We simply need to recognize there is no “or” in this verse. Instead, the word we see four times is “and.” We need to recognize our home as our first mission field AND we need to be involved in reaching out to people in our community AND state. AND we need to serve those in foreign lands as well. We may do so through physically traveling, financially supporting or supporting in prayer.
We all have endless opportunities to invest our time, energy and resources. Yet, our resources, energy and time are limited. Choose wisely. And please, remember your Jerusalem.