Who's Holding the Rope?

Lately I've been thinking about the different roles we all play when it comes to missions.  God has a purpose and a calling for each of us in this area, and even if you aren't called to move overseas, you are still called to participate in God's global purposes.  The call to missions isn't one that's answered only by those who go.  Instead, God calls his whole church to be a part of missions by being either a goer or a sender.

Goers are those who pack up and leave behind everything familiar for the unknown of a new country or culture.  Goers are the ones on the front lines of missions, who are bringing the Good News to those who have never heard the name of Jesus.  William Carey was an extremely influential missionary to India.  Before setting off for the mission field someone said to him, "There is a gold mine in India; but it seems as deep as the center of the earth, who will venture to explore it?"  Carey responded with, "I will go down, but remember that you must hold the rope."

Imagine trying to climb down into a mine with no one to hold the rope for you.  You would have no support system, no one backing you up or encouraging you in your climb.  Carey's illustration shows the importance of having senders within the church.  Without their support, there would be no missions.  There would be no one to take the gospel of Christ into the nations.

Senders are those called to "hold the rope" for the goers through prayer and financial support.  Even though they might not be called to the front lines, their commitment to support those who go is crucial.  Though financial support it important, we cannot underestimate the impact of prayer in missions.  I think this is the most important role the senders have.  If missionaries go to another country or culture but their mission is not undergirded in prayer, their work may very well be in vain.

The past several years we have experienced the blessing of "holding the rope" for other missionaries.  We have friends all over the world in the mission field, and we love being part of God's global purposes through prayer and financial support.  It's been incredible to see God at work through those we are sending!

Over the next few years we will be preparing for the mission field ourselves.  We will be transitioning from being just senders to being goers as well, and we're really excited about it.  Excited and a little scared.  The idea of raising support seems daunting, especially since neither Patrick nor I like the idea of asking people for money.  But then I remember that this is what God calls the church to do, and those who support missions are greatly blessed by their giving and their praying.  If we were to go into missions without partnering with supporters we would deprive them of the blessing God has in store for them by being involved in global missions, and we would deprive ourselves of the prayer support critical to keeping missions alive.

We have been praying for and about those individuals and families who will choose to come alongside us and hold the rope for us as we head to southeast Asia to share the gospel.  We cannot do it alone, and I'm excited to see who God will call to be part of our sending team.  We'll be spending a few weeks there this summer to check out some different ministry opportunities, and I'm sure this trip will set our hearts on fire for the lost people there!  My prayer is that the Lord would also set your heart on fire for missions, and that you would experience the blessing of holding the rope!