The "Mission"

I should have written this piece a week ago but because of the inanities of everyday modern life where changing my 2 year old son's nappies is as complicated and strenuous as building a multi-dimensional data cube from disparate business systems - has somehow started to drain and affect my fleeting euphoria from a spirit-filled experience. And so I have to press myself in writing down my thoughts on an experience I wouldn’t let my memory pass. A personal life-changing encounter comparable to Neil Armstrong's proverbial "One step for a man one giant leap for mankind" epigraph.

Sounds dramatic. Well, drama would be an understatement when me and my wife had just had our first christian evangelical mission for Couples for Christ. Yes, we were part of a mission team from Fairfield chapter to "establish" a relationship and plant the seed of christian community in the idyllic yet beautiful city of Rockhampton in Queensland - a touch of cliche, yes. I double-quoted the word "establish" for the reason that related phrases like build contacts; lay down the foundation; introduce the CFC ethos; set a mark in evangelizing; showed the way and etc. would not be enough to define the fulfillment of our objectives in that almost 3 day soujourn. But personally, I had chosen that word because it had fitted my own realization of what the mission was - it has substantiated my fledgling belief that God has a master plan after all.

That plan is but a page torn out of God's mysterious master strategy to send a ragtag team composed of "missionaries" whose personal life goals, I guess, were intertwined by a common thread of motivation - the need to demonstrate their desire to practice their faith. It may sound superfluous but in essence this is what I felt with my wife and the mission team. Because what greater reason would it be for a team leader to leave his wife who just had a recent surgery; a family to spend a fortune not to enjoy but to serve, a couple whose spiritual journey is as solid as a rock, a couple whose lone daughter is a living witness of their hunger to see where their faith leads; another couple who leverages their service for having a special child; my wife, even though pregnant has to let go of minding her 7 children to join me, who has to contend with working eight days a week just to have both ends meet...all of which are solid affirmation of Matthew's words (16:24-5)... if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Found it we did...the meaning of life in service. A mission fraught with so many unknowns but yet filled with unplaced conviction that somehow or something will be accomplished. A mission where value was not for the service we've given and rendered but for the rich experience and confirmation of faith we received. And talking about values - it somehow helped put myself and my outlook in life (including my wife) in a different perspective. The "mission" had provided me a glimpse of what life should be and the way it should be treated. The way we were welcomed in Rockhampton without the fanfare but with openness and humility of the "rocky" people has provided me personally of how true christian relationships should be built on - a sincere quid pro quo partnership based on honesty and love between the people doing the mission and the recipient of the mission.

I believe that the underlying principle in all the chapters in the bible is that living in Christ is a mission - Without it, we won't have anything left in the bible except the covers. A missionary is not a church planter or a soul-winner, a missionary is being Jesus to the world. It is ME being MYSELF to the world, but the key here is that the ME is Christ 'as me,' 'in me' and 'through me'. Being a missionary is allowing Jesus to do whatever it is that Christ has created me to do to my fullest potential in the world.

And we have shown that in the Rockhampton mission, the conviction to stay steadfast inspite of the conflicts in schedule, the time constraints, the unfamiliar territory, the untested ability to compress the talks and so on and forth. God's master plan was unfolding - the game should not be played by our rules of engagement but by the guidance of our coach, the ever primeval Holy Spirit. And we realized, learned and accepted that His plan was not only for us to plant the seed of christian community in that place but also to plant in our hearts the seed of mission and true faithfulness in Him no matter what and no matter when.

Passing thru the scenic place of Hawkesbury river on a train to Newcastle and looking at the tranquil waters slowly weaving its current toward the unknowing rail line, I can't help closing my eyes in absolute peace and seeing the mission team being given the sublime pat on the back by that Being we called God and saying to us...."Job well done".