Two-day mission trip

I’m writing this next to the pool at the Hotel Paisano in Marfa. It’s early on Saturday morning and I’m reflecting on the first part of a two-day mission trip that is totally about sharing Jesus.

Four of us loaded our gear in a pickup truck and took off to t his small west Texas town where they filmed the movie Giant and we have made multiple stops along the way to share Jesus with the random people we have met. Hotel Paisano was the destination only to spend the night and then turn around and head back home, repeating the process.

It’s been very insightful, a time of growth and renewal. No doubt a time of leaving the comfort zone to do what Jesus has told us to, which is, “Go, tell, baptize and teach (Matthew 28:19 & 20).” It’s definitely been a Jesus trip along with a time of spiritual sharpening (Proverbs 27:17) and fellowship.

I’ve learned a lot. That happens on a mission trip, right? I’m not really a fan of “mission trips” because your mission ain’t no trip, it’s a way of life. Mission trips no doubt are good for pushing people outside of their comfort zone and making us realize there is a whole different world out there. I’m hoping some of the fruit of this labor is that each of us on this mission team will risk more and be more regular and bolder in sharing the reason we have hope (1st Peter 3:15).

My heart is heavy at this halfway point. We have no converts but I’m not that surprised. What we have found out is the data that companies like Lifeway, Barna and even Pew Research is true. Most people in America claim to be Christians but are not active in a church and I would guess not pursuing Christ the way that is prescribed and described in Scripture. We have encountered many people from a mainstream denomination that can’t tell you what the Gospel is or how to form/ establish a relationship with Jesus Christ that saves you from your sin and eventually lands you in Heaven. My point is how can you be a Christian if you can’t tell someone how you became a Christian? Someone even claimed that Muslims and other religions are all like us, they pray to our God, and we will all eventually end up in the same place. If that were true (which it isn’t) then why did Jesus die on a cross?

We were encouraged in a way at the Big Bend Saddler y in Alpine. A young lady named Molly could articulate what faith in Christ meant along with when and where she became a Christian. It’s a bummer that Molly is no longer a part of any local church since moving to this part of Texas. I get it. Finding a new church home can be hard and while going to church does not make you a Christian, a Christian will be in church on a regular basis.

We left Gospel tracts with all that we could (yes, we were those guys) and will be praying for committed relationships with those we encountered and for a harvest to take place. Marfa apparently needs a new church plant as well. Rose in Jett’s Grill says there are only a handful of people in each of the remaining churches in this town. I’m still trying to take it all in.

He told me to tell you that.