Fitting Missions into Busy Lives
Our lives are busy. Between work, chores, pets, church life, soccer practice, school, toddlers, you name it—distractions are everywhere. Adding another thing to think about to the never-ending list can seem overwhelming. So how do you include missions in your everyday life?
Well, I’m not an expert in the matter, but maybe some of these suggestions can give you ideas for including missions and missionaries in your everyday life.
For our Japan, South Sudan, South Asia, and Pakistan 1 fields, prayer cards are available. Just ask us for a set or a stack for your church. Hang them on a refrigerator or in a frame on a wall. Our mission field workers also have prayer cards that can be used in the same way. You could also make a flip book with the pictures of fields and missionaries. Use a hole punch in each card, add a ribbon or book ring, and there you have it. Flags, globes, or even art from fields can welcome missions into the home. Some have found that adding a clock that is set to a time zone found on a field can also be helpful for keeping the nations in front of you!
Why would someone add art or pictures of others on their walls? It can help remind you to pray for the nations, our fields, and missionaries. Often, when I’m opening my refrigerator to make dinner, I notice the faces of the RPGM missionaries and it reminds me to pray for them, even if it is brief.
Recently my three-year-old nephew was on a quest to earn money doing chores. He wanted to give that money to missionaries for the Kid2Kid campaign. He asked me in his little three-year-old way if he could help me with chores so that he could earn money. He was learning so much in that moment: how to give generously and how to work hard. What a brilliant idea my sister had. . .and my nephew loved filling his jar with coins to be able to give generously. We can make decisions around our budget so we can give more generously, and we can instill a spirit of generosity into our children.
Another way to include missions in your life and your family’s life is to make a point of attending missions talks at church and read updates aloud or at least talk about them as a family. This is a way to stay up to date and to encourage missionaries. When I was growing up, my mom read missionary stories out loud to my siblings and me which really instilled in us an interest, awareness, and love for missions. Another way to encourage missionaries is to respond to their update emails or send them emails occasionally—birthday messages and simple greetings. Feel free to share with them about what is going on in your own life, as well, as sometimes being on the field can be isolating. You may get a response, but don’t expect it. Perhaps they will receive your greeting on a hard or discouraging day.
We have all been blessed by God for a reason—to be a blessing to others in big and small ways. Who can you bless today?