PRAYING FOR
WORLD MISSIONS

November:

Missions and the Local Church

From the very beginning, the church’s task has been to bear witness “to the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8). In order for this to take place, churches with more resources must become sending churches (Rom 10:15). It is an obligation placed upon us by God. Unfortunately, for several centuries now, missionary organizations have taken over global missions and severed their connection to the local church. Missiologist Lesslie Newbigin called this development “one of the great calamities of missionary history.” The harm is not only felt by global missions but also by the local church which suffers “a loss of its missional identity … becoming an introverted body that caters to its own members….” When the church loses sight of its calling to “the ends of the earth,” “the heart goes out of the whole business.”

First Things First

As a church, then, we want to give significant attention to global missions. We can seek to do so in various ways: by investing in those who take the gospel into territories where the church has little or no visible presence, by investing in the training of pastors and teachers, and/or by investing in care of persons in a recognizably Christian fashion (e.g., orphans homes, schools, and hospitals that are run by those whose intention is to bear witness to Christ). Going before and alongside any and all of these activities, however, should be prayer. This much we can do immediately. It is prayer that will carry the mission of Christ forward wherever it goes; it is prayer that will guide our own involvement in the mission; it is prayer that each of us and all of us together can contribute to the global mission without delay. So this month, let us pray for the world, and let us pray that God will see fit to include us in the great work he is doing to win the world to himself.

MEET THE MISSIONARIES

Irving Church is blessed to be friends of several missionaries doing the work of the Kingdom all over the globe. Over the course of November, we will be hearing their reports about their ministries, what God is doing in their part of the world, and - most importantly - how we can labor in prayer with them.

Listen to their field reports and join us this month in praying for their Kingdom work.