A Missionary in the Blogosphere

I  have often thought that if I had my life to live over again and knowing what I know now - that is Jesus Christ - I would probably have liked to be a missionary in Africa.

Perhaps because of my music background, I have always felt a close connection with the people of Africa and the vitality of their praise and worship that comes from them, especially in song.  They abandon all self-consciousness, much like David did as he returned the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.  The natural rhythm and harmony they have been gifted with pours out of them as they raise their voices to the Lord, even in the face of severe persecution.  Something stirs deep within me when I hear them sing and listen to the almost-perfect cadence of praise expressed in their own language.  And I cannot get enough of it.

But since I spent half my life running from the One Whom they are singing about, I can only create romantic (and unrealistic) visions of what it would have been like to live amongst them.  In a sense, their voices that are reaching out from videos and music CD’s are witnessing to me and to my heart.  Because of faithful men and women chosen by God who were able to do what I was not, they are a reminder of how far-reaching the Word of God and His Gospel truly is.

Okay.  Enough with the “what ifs” and on to what the Lord has enabled me to do:  be a blog missionary.  I know the title may strike some of you as odd.  It may even elicit a chuckle from a few (and if you do, don't feel bad because, at first, I did, too).  But to all you Christian bloggers out there, take a moment to consider how vast your mission field is………..(I'll give you a little time to think about it)..........

Pretty big, huh? 

In fact, it's the whole world.  Anyone anywhere in the world with a computer and an internet connection has the capability of inadvertently or intentionally landing on your web page through a multitude of means and reading the words you have posted there.  Are you beginning to get the picture and see the possibilities, yet?

I know some of you reading this may say, “But, wait a minute!  We can’t hide behind a computer screen and the ethernet.  There must be physical, face-to-face contact and interaction in our witness!”  For the most part, that goes without saying.  However (and here comes the caveat), we should be using every avenue available to us to get the LORD Jesus Christ’s message of hope and salvation out to a world dead in sin.  What better way is there to do that while we are here on our blogs?

It took me a while to realize that my blog was smack dab in the middle of a huge mission field and that there was a harvest ripe for the picking.  That I even began this blog over two years ago is testament to the Lord placing me here.  As I have worked to keep it up and going, He has quietly brought a daily parade of visitors from every imaginable corner of the earth.  (The visitor counter I installed on the blog has been a valuable tool in recognizing this, so if you don't have one, get one.)

My visitor’s religious or non-religious persuasions crazily vary from one end of the spectrum to the other, often causing me to wonder why they landed on such an obvious Christian blog.  But, how they came and why they are here is not for me to question.  What they find here is what is vitally important.  After all, there is no such thing as “chance”, it’s my belief they are here for a reason, and my posts better reflect what God wants them to see.

I have a renewed purpose here on the blog.  It has always been about serving and glorifying God the LORD Jesus Christ.  But, now, my service has a whole new meaning.  There is a lost world looking for answers and He is sending a few of them here to my mission field to get them.

I may not be able to be in Africa, but God is sending Africa to me.  And the music is beautiful.

* * * *

The Gospel simply put:

Because man has been at enmity with Him since Adam’s fall in the Garden of Eden, God the Father stepped out of eternity, laying aside his robe and crown, and into the world as a human.  God required a sacrifice be made to atone for the sins brought upon all of  mankind through Adam’s disobedience and this man, Jesus Christ, God the Son, became the sacrificial Lamb who would be punished for those sins.  Yours and mine.  He was beaten and scourged, spat upon and reviled, then nailed to a cross.  He died.  But, three days later, He rose back to life, defeating death and, after presenting Himself as a testimony of His Divine act to the Apostles and over 500 others, He  returned to His throne.  By doing so, He has provided sinful man a way back to God the Father and eternal life. 

You, too, can have the salvation Jesus Christ secured for us by repenting of your sins and placing your faith and trust in Him as your Savior and your God.

To Him be the glory and the praise, both now and forevermore.