On the Cost....

Missions is expensive. To follow that statement, I could give you dollar amounts and ask for support. But really, I'm talking about a far greater cost.
Because when you break it down, choosing a life of missions is choosing death.

Sure, that's a bit dramatic, but when you stop and think about it, it really is a type of death. Death of things familiar. Death of desires and dreams. Death of a semi-predictable future. The list goes on.
So I've decided.... Missions is Expensive.

Let me break down some of the costs:
It is the cost of leaving loved ones behind.
It is the cost of missing important events in the lives of friends and family (weddings, births, funerals, baptisms...)
It is the cost of living in a strange culture.
It is the cost of developing relationships around language barriers
It is the cost of forcing  one's body to adjust to new climate, habits, hygiene, and nutrition.
It is the cost of forsaking 'normal' and 'comfortable' things.
It is the cost of living in a context of change.
It is the cost of exposing one's self to the pains and sorrows of others.
It is the cost of lonliness.

But you see, I believe there is a far greater cost in NOT doing missions, whether locally or abroad.

It is the cost of being rich and increased with goods, and having need of nothing.... including God.
It is the cost of living a life with minimal eternal impact.
It is the cost of forgetting the real meaning of the Gospel.
It is the cost of not seeing God worshiped in all nations.
It is the cost of ignoring God's command.
It is the cost of souls.

With these different costs in mind, I see a far greater value in serving God through sharing the gospel, than in protecting my life as I know it.
So I choose to be willing.
Willing to go...or to stay. Willing to share. Willing to be vulnerable. Willing to sacrifice. Willing to give.
 So whether here or abroad, I choose to live a life of missions. A life that presents the Gospel both through words, and through actions. May all who come behind me, find me faithful.