From the edge of the world

They say it doesn’t exist, but I’ve been there.

As a matter of fact, I feel like I’m there now. While writing these words, I stare out across a piece of glass the locals call the Marmara Denizi (Sea of Marmara). I watch the sun set in a sky so blue it meets the water with a harmony that deceives the eye. It is impossible to see where the world ends and the heavens begin. It is as if I’m at the world’s end. No wonder the ancient Greeks of this land imagined floating off into the endless expanse of water and arriving at new worlds.

Truth is, it’s been far too long since I have been across the water. The last day I spent overseas prior to this trip was my final day in Africa. In a few months, three years will pass since that day. Too long.

I thank God for my time here these past two weeks. It was a fresh reminder why we must reach for the world’s edge. Ironically, working in the great commission center at the “Great Commission Seminary,” can have its lulling effects on the heart. Like these waters lapping against the stone wall of this hotel, as the tide slowly pushes the waves, the constant drum beat of mission and evangelical purpose can begin to lose its sharp edge in the heart and mind of the hearer. We must remember that faith without works is dead, that a pep rally without a football game is merely a parade of words with no substance.

We came to provide classes and training to laborers toiling amongst the harvest. I have listened this week to the testimonies of great commission workers from across the globe as they shared about the spiritual battles they fight. Some came victorious and others feeling beaten, but God is glorified in the obedience of these people and his mission marches forward. Their stories bear witness to the truthfulness of God’s word, that the very gates of hell will not prevail against Christ’s church.

Our task is to go… not merely to talk about going.