A few weeks ago, I asked, what am I going to do about all the brokenness and messed-up-ness in the world? Well, it’s a big question, and I’m quite sure it’ll take the rest of my life to answer (do let me know if you’ve got it figured out!). However, the book of Ephesians and a little time back in the States have helped me begin to wade through the many facets of this monstrous charge we’re all faced with: to go and be disciples of Christ.
Ephesians 2:10 tells us, “We are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus to do good things. God planned for these good things to be the way that we live our lives.”
But what does that mean? If we know that there’s so many “good things” to be done in the United States and throughout the world, where do we even start? Isn’t working with orphans in the Sudan more immediate, important to God than leading a weekly Bible study? People are sick, starving, dying without hearing about Jesus…isn’t that enough to get us all on international mission trips? How could we buy $2.50 Diet Cokes at restaurants when $2.50 is enough to feed and house a kid in Zambia for 2 weeks? Or, on the other hand, God gave us the privilege and the ability to work in the States for a reason – isn’t it more financially savvy for us to work in the US full-time and give most of what we make to the poor? Isn’t it wasteful to pay your way to go to Africa, South America, and wherever else when the money you spent on tickets could drill 3 or 4 water wells for people who’ve never lived with clean water? Back and forth, back and forth, the debate goes on.
The main problem we’ve got here is that we’ve labeled the “missionaries” “goers” and those on “the home front” “senders.” What a gross convolution of our mutual call to serve the world as the united body of Christ. “Missionaries” are anyone, anywhere (whether it’s as a salesman or a stay-at-home mom), living out the kingdom in a world that’s broken. “The home front,” on the other hand, is wherever two are gathered, from the Sudan to Chicago.
So instead of bickering with myself over what kind of “doing good” is better or more worthwhile or more necessary, I took a step back and did what I do best: I made a list. I’ve got to remember to:
(1) Recognize what’s from God and what’s not. I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t been difficult to transition from Mongu, where kids wear the same shirt to school every day of the week because it’s the only one they have, to the United States, where people buy clothes so often and impulsively they have a nickname for it: “shopping spree.” But money and resources are not bad things! They’re actually God-given, God blessing us so that we can bless others. God doesn’t like poverty and he doesn’t want poverty for his children, and the harsh discrepancy between the world’s richest rich and its poorest poor is repulsive, especially to God. Our responsibility as Christ-followers is to share – share our resources, share our time, share ourselves. The obsession over wealth, and not wealth itself, is the sickness we fight against.
(2) Decide to live counter-culturally. I’ve found this harder to do in the States than it was in Mongu. Outside of my normal context and culture I stuck out like a sore thumb anyway, so living “counter-culturally” for Christ wasn’t as hard as it sounds. Here, subtle messages on body image, money, materialism, and always wanting more bombard me wherever I go, whatever I do, whether it’s driving down the freeway looking at bulletin boards or dodging poop-up advertisements while checking my email. I have to decide to live for Jesus, wherever I am.
(3) Understand that God is God and I am not. Funny how easily I’m prone to do this. I have a responsibility as a part of Jesus’ body to make God’s kingdom down here a reality and live like it, but it’s neither in my power nor is it my responsibility to act like God in trying to fix the world. I can do all things through God, but it’s him who does his redemptive work through me.
(4) Act on what God wants me to do, and support the things that God wants others to do. We’re all called to do different things, whether it’s witnessing to the coworker sitting one cubicle over by asking him to do lunch or shipping off to the Middle East to promote reconciliation and peace in the name of Jesus. Jesus’ body couldn’t function if everyone tried to be his right-hand thumb or we all wanted to be his forehead. Unity in the Church means supporting each other in whatever ways we can while living out our call to the fullest.
(5) Make my life’s mission to love on people. :)
The engineer in me would love to tell you, “yes, that’s my final answer with 99.8% accuracy so I’m going to put a box around it and call it a day.” But, as I said before, this whole “what am I going to do about it” question is going to take some chewing on, so bear with me as I continue to learn about Jesus, his Way, and his Church – i.e., us!
