Time is Tickin' Away...

Missions aren't Impossible. Act Now!

The time to change your world is almost gone. I don't mean this metaphorically, though our lives are "dust in the wind," the Oral Roberts University's Summer Missions department is winding up team selection this week. If you haven't applied yet, you may want to consider some things.

First, missions is not something ORU endorses merely because it's a good experience. The truth is missions is the heart of God, and of ORU - reaching out and touching others with the love of Christ.

Do not go on missions because you think it will be "cool." It is, but it is also hard work. On the same token, do not let your emotions keep you from going. Fears about missing Mom, Dad, Spot and clean laundry affect us all, but don't let it chain you down to the progress of a sloth. Now why should you go on missions? I remember my thoughts as I applied to go on my first trip to Indonesia six years ago. I was determined to do something of eternal value, and missions was the obvious choice. I also remember my thoughts that summer in the middle of a rain forest nestled in the middle of nowhere; "I hate this. I want my Mommy and my Serta!" It was hard at times, and I was so homesick that when I got home, I didn't leave the house for months (I was home schooled). But I had no regrets about the trip. I was glad I had gone, and so were the people to whom I was able to minister.

What about not feeling "called?" God has already "called" you to be a minister of reconciliation and a witness to this world. But what if you don't have an intense love for the lost? The Bible says to "put on love" (Colossians 3: 14). "To put on" means to act or pretend. The cool thing is that when you "put on love" you will shortly find that you are no longer pretending - you actually do have a deep Christ-like love for others. Now the previous reasons where all well and true, but there are a few other things it would do us well to consider. For one, going to a foreign soil on missions is a novelty. Short term missionaries a century ago took their luggage overseas in a coffin. Thankfully, it is much safer than it used to be. Missions is also something you may not be able to do when you graduate or get married. If you haven't gotten your feet wet, you probably should.

Then there is the character building that it does in your own life, such as the expanding of your horizons. When you see the poverty, sin and deception that is rampant in the Third World, you can no longer live life the same way. Your priorities take on an eternal dimension, which makes ordinary life seem like a two dimensional black and white world.

Now who can forget (though some wish they could) the classic song "Have patience, have patience. Don't be in such a hurry." Patience isn't something that you learn on missions; it is missions. Not only do you learn how to work with people who work on the "rubber time" concept, but you begin to reevaluate the American task-oriented mentality. Most of the world values relationships first - being on time ranks somewhere between ~the abilities to sing the theme to "Gilligan's Isle" and to laugh like Urkle.

You also have a newfound compassion for foreigners in America. On missions, being out of your element and having to communicate in a tongue that sounds like a spoon in a garbage disposal, you quickly learn to be more forgiving and patient.

Finally, there are the memories. If excitement in your life means watching the stop lights turn on at three a.m., or riding down main street mooing at the cows, missions would do you good; God will not be out given. When you give your summer to Him, He bombards you with experiences, growth, friends, souvenirs, interesting diets, resume items and a newfound love for God and others. As if those weren't enough, He allows you the privilege of changing someone's life for eternity.