Daily on the Verge of Sacrifice

I am not sure what God is saying to me in all of this but it seems like I am getting a lot of news from the mission field this week, and it all relates to the incredible dangers our missionaries face. At the very least the message is clear that the people of God need to ramp up our prayer effort for those serving around the world. Here is a copy of an email I received from a missionary team from our church, Alan and Sandy Stone who are serving in Peru. You can really hear Alan’s heart in this:

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Brother Brian, Pastor

It has been a tough weekend and beginning to this week. Last Saturday around 2 pm one of our student summer missionaries was in a combi wreck 19 hours by truck from Lima. He suffered severe head trauma and died in route to the little clinic there. He was on our research team with two young ladies who were slightly injured. He had just graduated from Ole Miss with an engineering degree, and was a wonderful young man and a very strong Christian and witness. He had ridden several times with me to church and around Miraflores, and I had just spoken to him for the last time in Nasca four days before he was taken to be with Jesus. More of this story can be found on the IMB website.

This has been a very sobering experience for me and a real dose of reality. My job is to travel these mountains for my Lord in public transportation and by truck, to see that HIS message is carried to the furthest village. This tragedy doesn't sway me from my call, but It shows me the urgency of our work, and just how dangerous our work can be. Next week I will be in the mountains with a team from Hickory Grove Baptist Church on a vision trip. The urgency of HIS message means our work must continue on, because people are dying every day without ever having a chance to know Jesus. Thank you for your prayers and thank you for your love.

(The Stones in Peru Blog)

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There is something different about the gospel in that people willingly place themselves on the brink of danger so that one more person can hear its message. There is no other way to contextualize what they do other than it is extremely dangerous. Note that it is not destructive in that they are willing to die as a means to kill others who do not believe as we do, but they are literally willing to die trying to reach, love, and share with those who have not heard the gospel. The missionaries hasten to none other but the example of Christ Himself who personified love in the nature of His death.

The missionaries of the gospel live daily on the verge of sacrifice as evidenced by this tragic news. Those of us living in the States should bathe them in prayer and should expect nothing less than to live daily on the verge of sacrifice ourselves. To follow the path of Jesus is to be willing to die trying to love, share, and reach those who have not heard the gospel.

In America we are consumed with trying to convince those who have already heard and say they believe the gospel to live it. How twisted is that?

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