4 Small Steps Into God’s Global Mission
Article written by Manik Corea, C4SO’s Global Consultant, and Bishop Todd Hunter and originally posted on the C4SO blog on February 22nd, 2023.
“You may not change the world, but you can change the world for one person.”
So goes the old adage. We as God’s people are tasked with a global work which can seem utterly overwhelming at times. Perhaps you’re thinking: “I can’t even keep my personal/work life and family straight! How can I even make a difference to some nation or culture on the other end of the world?”
How can we have global hearts that care and make a difference in our world today?
Below, we’ll share small, manageable steps to keep in view—and participate in—God’s global mission right where we are.
The first time I (Manik) went on a short-term mission trip, my mind was literally blown away by the scope and challenge of global mission.
In 1997, I went with a team from my local Anglican church in Singapore to visit a missionary family from our parish who was serving with Wycliffe Bible Translators in Papua New Guinea. They had spent a few years with the Daga people, a remote, small tribe living in the remote Papua highlands.
It was an eye-opening, life-changing experience for me. Imagine sharing a week with a people who had no concept of the technological-driven globalized world we live in. They literally had no idea what televisions, microwaves, ships or airports were—or a host of things we take for granted!
Yet, the Daga people were precious to God, such that missionaries had come to live amongst them, learn their language, devise a written script to teach them so that they can finally read for themselves the Book that carried the good news of Jesus.
Global mission inspires a labor of love that calls us to care and to act on behalf of all people—whether sacrificially in going to people who live in isolation on the other end of the earth or in simple acts toward people who live across the street in your neighborhood.
Regardless, to participate in God’s mission today, you start where you are. Small steps into God’s global mission begin with simple, even faltering or seemingly feeble acts. Done in Christ’s name in God’s power and time, these acts may make a tremendous difference in someone’s life someday.
Here are 4 small steps you can take into God’s great mission.
1. Pray.
You can pray regularly for your friends and family who are far from God and need to know and follow Jesus, asking that God will give you words and opportunities to share about him. (Make a list on your phone or stick a Post-It note on your laptop to remind you).
2. Care.
You can seek to build a long-term friendship with a neighbor, a work colleague, an international student or someone in your community who is not from the same ethnicity or subculture. Be inquisitive—find out about their life, their culture and their story. Invite them to your home for a meal. Or to a social event. Befriend them simply as an end in itself. If they have a need, help to meet it. Sensitively share your story of faith or answers to prayer when and where appropriate. Finally, invite them to your church community if they are receptive.
3. Partner.
You can support (or encourage) your church’s involvement in missions—whether to missionaries and ministries serving locally, in the country or abroad. Give as God prospers you. Pray with others in your church for your missionaries. Email or message them if you can. They will be blessed by the partnership you and your church have with them.
4. Do Something.
You can make a difference for Christ to someone, somewhere—whether in your city, town, neighborhood or further afield. You could sponsor a child, serve in a soup-kitchen, or do a random act of kindness. You could speak a word of encouragement to the weary cashier at the supermarket.
I (Todd) suggest just doing something right and good and seeing where it leads you. Debbie and I started by supporting Compassion children. We have done so for decades. Compassion does a great job at keeping supporters in touch with the children, understanding their lives, suggesting prompts for prayer, giving to their special needs, sending birthday presents, etc.
One easy step to get your church in touch with the globe would be to have a “Compassion Sunday” in which members can sign up to support children. As members become aware of the issues of children around the globe, it will help shape the church’s heart to be more global. At least, it worked that way for Debbie and me. In God’s hands, little things can become the means to touch and transform lives.
As Leslie Newbigin once wrote, “Live in the kingdom of God in such a way that it provokes questions for which the gospel is the answer.”
Global mission can begin where you are when you are willing to pray, care, share, give and get involved in the lives of those God has put in your life, church and world. Look for little opportunities to tell and show the good news of Jesus to people touched by your prayers and genuine concern.
The Rev. Manik Corea served for 13 years as a church-planter in Bangkok, Thailand with the New Anglican Missionary Society (NAMS). He and his wife are now serving in a new season of mission in his native Singapore—involving coaching, writing and resourcing a new generation of missional workers and leaders in God’s mission among the unreached. He also serves as C4SO’s Global Consultant. Manik writes a weekly newsletter, “The Upward Call” on Substack. Contact Manik.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Todd Hunter is the founding bishop of The Diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others and founder of The Center for Formation, Justice and Peace. He is past president of Alpha USA, former national director for the Association of Vineyard Churches, and retired founding pastor of Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Costa Mesa, CA. He is the author of Christianity Beyond Belief: Following Jesus for the Sake of Others, Giving Church Another Chance, The Outsider Interviews, The Accidental Anglican, Our Favorite Sins, Our Character at Work and Deep Peace. His forthcoming book, What Jesus Intended: Finding Faith in the Rubble of Bad Religion, is now available for preorder. Bishop Todd writes a weekly newsletter, The Gospel of the Kingdom.