by Jotham Johann Jhang

During the season of Lent, congregations focus especially upon the service that God rendered upon His people, even to allow His own Son to be nailed on the cross for our sins.  Passion Week is an occasion for refocusing upon Christ’s passion for the lost and His mission.  Congregations collect special offerings to benefit mission causes, take part in servant events, and donate food and clothing to the poor, remembering Christ’s Great Commission and His charge for us to help those in need.

     However, many congregations do missions during the Christmas and Lenten seasons, but then turn inward during the remainder of the church year.  Many of our congregations focus on inreach largely rather than outreach. They even leave the work of missions and evangelism here in North America and throughout the world to large organizations, such as denominations.  As a result, the rank and file Christians in the pew, including Lutherans, feel disconnected, even disenfranchised from missions.

     The 80’s and 90’s brought much financial prosperity not only to our nation, but also to many of our congregations and their members. But disconnected as they were, rather than reaching out to those in need of the Gospel, many of our congregations used most of their resources to take care of themselves. Certainly, taking care of parish life and needs is an important and vital part of God’s ministry.  But is this the principal aim of the church which Jesus Christ established here on earth?  

     Moreover, during the 80’s and 90’s, members of congregations prospered. We were so abundantly blessed by the Lord that public storage became a booming industry.  We have so much, that we feel the need to store so much and much of what we store we really don’t need.  How about the treasures we need to store in heaven? How about using some of that excess to aid in the fight against AIDS, particularly in Africa?  How about using some of that excess to aid in the effort to spread the Gospel to the 97% of the 2.3 billion Asian peoples around the world, including those here in North America, who are unchurched? Instead, we see the building of subdivision after subdivision, and people moving  into  new,  large homes, but feeling even more empty inside as their friends and loved ones hardly have the time to visit them and they too, hardly have the time or energy  to make new friends in a new neighborhood in a world beset by violence in elementary schools, illegal drugs in the suburbs, and ricin in the mail.

     Then, the tragedy of 9/11 happened, along with a faltering economy. Many people began to lose their jobs. Increasing numbers of children and the elderly lost their access to health care. Communities lived in fear of snipers and terrorists. None of the above were created by God. But certainly He is using these developments to mold us and reform us, under the cross of Christ.  Certainly these developments have provided us wide-open windows of great opportunity to spread the Gospel. So many hurting people are turning to God and to the church for answers.  

     I do believe the church, by the grace of God, is responding today with a fire for outreach.  Denominations and large organizations, like the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod are still around to assist, but it is the work of the local congregation that has caught fire.  I hear the term “mother congregation” a la the Antioch church of the book of Acts bandied about much more often. I see local congregations opening up their church doors and their hearts, as did the church of Antioch, to people of various ethnic groups, those in need, and those pining to hear about Jesus. I see local congregations sponsoring missionaries and sending their members on short and long term mission trips here in North America and throughout the world in record numbers. This sounds like a mission movement, similar to 1st Century Christianity.    

    CAME’s mission is to equip and empower congregations to reach out with the Gospel to Asian people groups.  We believe CAME is part of this mission movement, and thus, we  began a partnership this year called the Antioch Congregation Network.  This network will help local congregations to be directly involved and engaged in Asian mission work. The first congregation to join this network was the Lutheran Church of St. Andrew in Silver Spring, Maryland.  If you and your congregation is on fire for outreach, and like Antioch and St. Andrew, wish to send missionaries and be involved with Asian mission work on a considerable basis, consider joining us.  Please consider being an Antioch congregation!  I want to pray a Blessed and mission-filled Lent and beyond to all of you.  Thank you for your prayers, volunteering, financial support, encouragement and partnership!

Dr. Jotham Johann Jhang
Executive Director
CAME

 Information about St. Andrews can be found at their website here:
http://www.mystandrew.org/

and in St. Andrew's latest newsletter:
http://www.mystandrew.org/Nsl-Apr2004.pdf 

 
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