Here’s an opportunity to shift our thinking about commissioning missionaries. As I noted this past week, August is the traditional “return-to-school” time in the United States. Many of our congregations are filled with public school teachers who will return to classrooms to invest into the lives of children, some of whom have never darkened a church door. Are you recognizing these folks as missionaries of your local congregation? Are you commissioning them and sending them into the field to represent Jesus and His mission in this world? If not, you need to rethink this.
The fact of the matter is that all followers of Jesus are sent into the world as His missionaries. Some folks are sent to other places and cultures far away while others are sent to the people and places of their local community. So it’s not just teachers who are missionaries, but plumbers, contractors, store clerks, farmers, stay-at-home moms and students in your congregation all have a missionary call as well.
The next few weeks would provide a great opportunity to recognize those who are serving Jesus through their vocation of teaching. Remind them that they are being sent as witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ, remind them of His great love and care for children and that their work contributes to the flourishing that God intends for His creation. Bless them to serve as ambassadors of Jesus, representing His kingdom to the young lives that they will spend the next year teaching, shaping, challenging and educating.
Most of us need a mindset shift. We need to recognize the reality that Jesus sends us all to do the work of representing Him and His kingdom. If you know any teachers, you know the challenges they face as they seek to invest in the next generation. They have an incredible opportunity to bless the next generation and to make a difference in the lives of children who may never have another opportunity to see a Jesus follower up close and personal. They are serving in a mission field in your own backyard.
Send your teachers this month. Bless them. Pray for them. Encourage them. Remind them that they are being sent to represent Jesus and His kingdom as they teach and invest in the next generation!
I’d love to hear about how your congregations are sending your teachers out to bear witness to Jesus and His Gospel.
Christ’s Peace,
Lance