Recently I was asked the following question on this blog: “Of the 15 people attending your group, how many had a completely non-church background before you arrived?”

The question looked to me like a passive aggressive challenge. I might have been wrong about the motivation behind the question, but regardless, the question itself is flawed.

This Christmas I found myself meditating on and being convicted by 1 Corinthians 12.   I had done a rather remarkable job, I thought, of completing my work in such a way that I could enjoy our time away, relaxing with my feet up.  All my gifts were purchased or made, wrapped, ribboned and tagged.  As for food preparation, I had made dry mixes and put them in Ziploc bags with photocopies of my recipes, highlighting missing ingredients.  I was oh-so-very-prepared.  Upon arrival at our first stop on the 20th, I made inquiries to see if I could be of any help...

In the late 1890s, a group emerged to coordinate the activities and witness of Christian groups in the British universities. In 1905 it took the name of the Student Christian Movement (SCM). Over time the SCM became broader theologically and focused on witnessing and bringing diverse groups together for evangelism. They embraced a critical approach to the study of the Bible, and even considered admitting those who denied the Trinity into their membership...

When we think of missions work, we often think of working in a far-off country like Peru or the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In other words, we think of foreign missions. But if we define a missionary as someone fulfilling the great commission, sent to share the gospel with those who have not heard the good news of Christ’s salvation, we will remember that missions work is truly global. If you are reading this, you are, more than likely, somewhere on the globe, and if there are people around, you’ve almost certainly found a good place for missions work.