lights, camera

I'm going to really, really, really miss CPC. So many evidences of grace I've witnessed here! God is so good.

Yesterday was our commissioning service. Below is a brief (and by brief, I mean approximately 5.63% of everything that I would have liked to share) testimony that was given to the congregation:

The first time I went to Paraguay was the summer after my first year in college. Growing up in CPC, I had always heard about our church plants and the work CPC was doing overseas, but I never really understood what it was we were doing there, or why we had missionary families living in a small town in the middle of South America. Motivated by curiosity and a desire to be bolder with my faith, I spent two weeks helping our church plants, Marangatu and Ebenezer, put on VBS for the local Paraguayan children. It was during these two weeks that God placed a burden in my heart for the lost and convicted me of my severe spiritual complacency. I realized that though I professed to be a Christian, my words often failed to match up with my deeds.

After that summer, I sought to put my faith into action by serving more in church and a campus ministry at UC Irvine. By His grace, I was deeply challenged that year as I saw how the harvest was so plentiful, not just overseas but in my own backyard. I used to think "missions" was a word just used to describe those trips people went on to do good works for people in poor countries. How small was my view of the greater work God has in store for His people! The glory of God is what's at stake here. We don't necessarily have to travel very far to reach the lost. They might be our family, friends, co-workers, the very people in our lives that God has called us to be missionaries to. But convinced of this and convicted by the calling to which we've all been called (Matt. 28:19-20), God continued to press upon my heart the people of Paraguay. I never expected to return, nor to keep remembering Paraguay in my prayers years after my first time, but in 2008 I was given another opportunity to go out with a team from CPC. I had been entertaining the idea of going overseas to serve, but wanted to make my conviction sure. Thus, this past summer I was more intentional about praying for the country and for my own heart. God convicted me once more with the following reasons below, and provided me with the opportunity to go out this summer again, but this time for a year and half:

1. Acts 1:8 "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Empowered by the Holy Spirit, I can trust that even in my weakness and inadequacies, God is more than able to use broken vessels like me for His glory. We are called to be witnesses not only locally, but also in our states, countries, and to the ends of the earth.

2. Compassion – What better way to display God's love than by showing compassion on those who are in need of help – not just physically, emotionally, or financially, but most importantly, spiritually.

3. Trusting in God – I hope to cultivate a deeper, unshakeable faith as I spend a year beyond the comforts of home. I expect to be stretched and challenged in many ways, but I trust that God will sustain me and cause me to trust in Him even more during the next year and half to come.

4. Implication of Christ's sacrifice – When reflecting on the sacrifice Christ made on the cross, I remember that I am not called to be fruitful, but simply faithful. Christ gave His all so that we could have it all – unity with the Father. Knowing that God gave His only, perfect Son for my many, imperfect sins compels me to fall at His feet in worship.

5. Obedience – The Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20) is full of active verbs – go, make, baptize, and teach. These verbs command us to be active in our faith, and so I'm going to Paraguay because the Bible tells me so. I've been given an opportunity to obey this command, and so it is out of obedience that I go.

6. No better time than now! Truly, our lives are so fleeting. There is no guarantee that we will be given another opportunity to talk to this person, or share the Gospel with that other person. Though I am weak and lacking in many ways, God has granted me stewardship over His time (re: previous post). I – and hopefully we all – will continue to seek out opportunities to use His time for His glory.

These six points are an acronym that spell out "ACTION." The Gospel is living and breathing, not a stagnant thing to be left lingering in our hearts and minds. As I go out this summer, my prayer is that this missions flame would not burn out, and that God would move me into action, no matter how big or small that action may be. Please pray that I would serve with genuine humility, and that God would prepare the people of Paraguay to hear the Gospel.

Dios te bendiga!