Have you ever been to a commissioning service for missionaries? We invite the person who is going out to come to the front of the church. Then we encircle them and pray for them. It is powerful. The person leaves not only with the blessings but with the empowerment to do what God has called them to do. At some point that sending out by the church may make all the difference in their work.
Who sent you to do what you are doing? Luke clearly tells us that the church and its leaders sent out Saul and Barnabas. But in the very next verse, Luke tells us they were sent by the Holy Spirit. The church literally did the work of God. When we fast and pray, we get the chance to join God in what he is doing. John also went along as a helper to Saul and Barnabas.
One of my favorite mission trips took me and members of our church to Alexandropoulos, Greece to minister to the missionaries who work in the Muslim world. We flew into Turkey and took a bus up to Alexandropoulos. Looking out across the water we saw islands which the Apostle Paul and his companions had visited during his missionary journeys. We literally walked in Paul’s steps at Philippi and later at Athens. Unforgettable.
One night as we gathered in Alexandropoulos, the news came that our airport had been bombed. We wondered how we would get home from the mission trip. But the missionaries led us in a powerful prayer meeting. They thanked God for his protection and trusted his provision. Our team would soon go home to the US, but they were commissioned to stay in a place where they often faced great opposition and danger. They had been sent out with prayer and prayer sustained them. Unforgettable.
What is God doing today? The same thing he has always done. God is a sending God. The Father sent his only Son. When he returned to heaven, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit sent the early disciples out into the world. Like them we are called to proclaim good news to our broken world. We hear his word of salvation and share it with others. For those who will receive it, this word becomes the power of salvation as they believe. Unforgettable.
