I ran across these prayers for missions from some who have gone before us as they prayed about their desire to be used by God in His plan to save those who are lost:
“O Lord, give me souls, or take my soul!” –George Whitefield, famous English evangelist in the 1700s.
“Lord, to Thee I dedicate myself, oh accept of me, and let me be Thine forever. Lord, I desire nothing else, I desire nothing more.” –David Brainerd, missionary to North American Indians in the 18th century.
“Give what Thou wilt, and how much Thou wilt, and when Thou wilt. Set me where Thou wilt and deal with me in all things as Thou wilt.” –Thomas à Kempis, 1379–1471.
“Use me then, my Savior, for whatever purpose and in whatever way Thou may require. Here is my poor heart, an empty vessel, fill it with Thy grace.” –Dwight L. Moody in the 1800s.
“Here let me burn out for God.” –Henry Martyn, a missionary, as he knelt on the ground in India in 18th century.
“Father, give me these souls, or I die.” –John Hyde, missionary to India, 19th century.
Are your prayers similar to these in any way?
So many of us pray in the following way for missions: “God send them. God use them. God speak to them.”
Yet these great missionaries and evangelists all said: “God use me, God send me, God speak to me, God help me lead people to You.”
We need to start praying to God about our direct involvement in missions. It doesn’t mean you have to go around the world, it just means we need to open our eyes to opportunities to be on mission around us. (Though, if you are truly open to God’s calling, He might just call you to the other side of the world!)
If the Bible is a missionary book, the people of the Book are charged with being a missionary people.
Let me conclude with an encounter after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. One of my church members was working with a Christian organization to provide grants for rebuilding. During one interview, a man came in and shared this with my friend Charles. He said:
My entire life, I have been so bad to God. But since Katrina, He has been so good to me. Volunteers are rebuilding my house, God has provided for my needs through church people from other parts of our country, and I have a restored relationship with God. All of the loss and devastation that happened to me through Katrina was worth it for me to have a right relationship with God.
Isn’t that what we want to hear as the result of our involvement with other people – that someone who was Lost is now Found? God has called you to a difficult task, but He has a plan for using you to make a difference in peoples’ lives right where you work and live. Let us not worry so much about how God might bless our lives, but let us consider how we might bless our Lord, our Savior, as we obey His calling to share Him with others.
There’s one thing you cannot do about missions: get rid of your responsibility.