“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
As familiar as this verse has always been, I always find something new every time I read or study it. There are various ways of interpreting this verse. In my writing preparation, I discovered that this verse encompasses the whole book of Acts. All the places the apostles were to be witnesses are broken down throughout its chapters. The apostles had just watched their loving Savior ascend to Heaven; they were trying to grasp the command He left with them. It seemed an overwhelming job to accomplish. However, our verse reminds us, no matter how staggering the task, we don’t go in our own power. Just as the apostles waited to be equipped with the Holy Ghost, we must be just as endowed as we go and tell others about Jesus.
The world today has expanded greatly since the early church. As we look over our own missions history as a denomination, we have seen the number of fields, as well as the number of laborers, multiplied. Paradigm changes have been prompted somewhat because of this growth. However, factors like needing more workers and the economy are now affecting change as well.
We all have a missionary calling as we carry the gospel day to day in our corner of the world. If we don’t feel the call to a specific field within the world, we must strive to give financial and prayer support to those who are either on the field or getting ready to go.
In today’s economy, many can’t or won’t give as in the past. We sometimes neglect praying as we should. Many times our “go” won’t even be across the street to a neighbor. Be willing to give, pray and go anticipating what God will do as we work through the adventures and challenges of the changing paradigm of missions.
Sue Winchester
Missouri
PRAY TOGETHER: Pray God would provide needed funding for WNAC ministries. Pray that women would cheerfully give membership fees toward this end. Pray also for the WNAC Executive Committee as they meet today concerning a new leader for WNAC.
