How Can I Become a Teen Missionary?

Question:

Okay, I'm 14 and I'm deciding to be a missionary to help in any way possible. I live in the Bible belt (Mississippi), so there's not a lot of call to do anything around were I live, but people need missionaries to go to different places, but my mom want let me go cause I'm too young. So any ideas on how I could make a difference in the world?

  

My Reply:

First of all, let me just say that I think it's really awesome that the Lord has put a passion for missions on your heart!  Maybe that's a calling, also? Excellent! Well, in 2005, the United States was the 3rd largest mission field in the world (I don't know where it's ranked today). Today, YOUR largest (and good training ground for missions) mission field is your school. You can serve there by:

1) Demonstrating Jesus in all you do.
2) Start up a Bible study on (or off) campus, and invite those who you wouldn't expect to ever pick up a Bible.
3) Missions and Evangelism work best when you know or are friends with the person/people you're communicating with. So join some clubs where you can get to know people on their levels.
4) Step out of cliques and your comfort zones at school, and take the time to get to know people you don't know or who'd be considered an "outcast". For example, sit next to them at lunch and start up a conversation.
5) Go against the grain: Youth your age are facing a LOT of huge issues (sex, identity, self image, acceptance, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, relationships, etc.), and only have culture to tell them what to do. Go against the culture of the world and stick to what Jesus and the Bible teach. When others see you doing this, they'll realize there are other options, and maybe even ask you about it, giving you a chance to share with them.

In many schools, you're not really "allowed" to talk about Jesus to others. But the loophole in that is that when people ask you about Him, you're allowed to answer their questions. So think of ways you can spark up conversations. For example, carry around (and read in between classes or in study hall) your Bible. Some of my former students would do this, and when others persecuted them for it, and asked why they carry it to school, it gave them the open door to share the Gospel with them.

I'm sure you can think of some other means of ministering to youth in your school, but I'd say start there.

---Pastor Andy  :}>+-

Evangelism (part 1)

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Question:

What happens when someone has never heard of your God/Christ?  I just want to know what you think, since this is one of the main reasons that I turned away from religion in elementary school (I'm in high school now and am an agnostic atheist). How is it fair that people in other countries who have never heard of your religion will burn in hell for not following it?   And if they don't, then how can you proclaim Christianity as the only way to salvation?  Religion is generally region specific. Christianity is only prevalent in Western countries and their former colonies. No one can control where they are born and thus what religion and culture they are born into. What happens to a person who leads a good life, but doesn't belief in your faith because they have never been exposed to it?

My Reply:

Your question is very common among non-believers and those who want to disprove or judge God.

First of all, Christianity is not about an "it" but a "who".  Christians don't follow Christianity, we follow Jesus.  The religion is the doing-part in response to our relationships with God through Jesus Christ.  In fact, if you don't have that relationship, then you really can't call yourself a Christian to begin with.  And when I say a relationship, I don't mean giving yourself to Jesus then having nothing to do with Him.  A relationship is an ongoing thing...constant communication (prayer), regular reading of His Word, baptism into the Body where He's the Head, engaging in the sacraments and fellowshipping with other body parts (Christians), studying and applying His Word (which you find in the Bible), listening for His direction and obedience to them, putting what we learn to practice, taking on God's character...anything else is just "religious".
Many who fall away from Christianity often do so because they never had that relationship in the first place.  Sometime they never picked up on that part, other times they focused so much on the doing that they didn't put in time with the relational part, and just burned out.  I'm assuming you'd fit in with this type of "religious" person.

So now say you're in a burning building with several other people. The building consists of 4 tall walls and a roof, no windows, and any doors are solid and locked from the outside. So there's no way out, and everybody agrees that such is the situation. It doesn't matter if you believe in fire or not, or if you believe in smoke or not. In fact, it doesn't even matter if anybody sees or smells the smoke or feels the heat. Point is, the building's burning, about to collapse, and there's no way out.

Now, let's say that you somehow find a way out. What do you do?  Do you run to the exit without telling anybody else?  Or do you inform everybody else in the room of your discovery so that they too may escape the flames?
My point of mentioning this is that sin is present, whether you believe it or not. Jesus is also the only way to be freed from the sin, whether you believe in Him or not (although you can only be freed from sin through Jesus). The second part is a response to the cop-out of what about those who don't know. The point here is that if you find the escape route, it's your responsibility to tell others so they too may escape the flames. In the same way, regardless of where you were born or into what culture, it's the responsibility of the "saved" person (or the person who discovered the way to safety) to tell others about the Way (which is Jesus Christ).

As for Christianity being a "Western" religion, Christianity began in the East, for it's the fulfillment of Judaism, which also originated in the East.  And the ONLY reason Christianity is known in the West is because of people who knew Jesus Christ that traveled from the East, to the West, in order to tell people who didn't know (for though much of the original colonizing was to escape the Church of England, much was also to evangelize to the natives of this land).  And so even today, Christianity continues to grow, moving in every direction, due to those who know Jesus.
I've heard your argument before that says if you were born in Iran for instance, you're bound to be a Muslim, or a Mormon if in Utah, or a Hindu if in India.  But then there ARE Christians living in those countries.  Plus, Christians and Christian teachings are everywhere, so where you live or were born no longer (or maybe never) holds water.  Also on that note, thanks to the internet, you can research "it" (called "it" for the sake of the discussion) from anywhere in the world.  ANY question about Christianity, Jesus, salvation through Christ, etc., you can find the answer to or research on.  Therefore, you can no longer use the excuse of being born here or there, for if you really want to know, you can find out.

So the question turns around now, stares you in the face, and asks, how will YOU respond?  Going back to the burning house, will you listen to the person trying to show you the way out, or will you use your excuses of culture and location as reasons to remain where you are?

---Pastor Andy

What If...?

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Question:

Born again Christians believe that those who do not believe in Jesus will be tortured for all eternity by a loving God. Suppose someone never had the opportunity to learn about Jesus. For instance they are in a remote African tribe and simply never heard of Christianity or Jesus. Are they damned for all eternity?

My Reply:

Ya know, people often mention the "what about this guy in remote Africa who never heard the gospel" question. But "hypothetically" speaking, if you really cared about what would happen to that one guy in remote Africa, you'd travel out to him and tell him about Jesus so that there would be no "what if" issues. But all honestly, you really don't care about him, but just use the question to justify God's fairness.

Yes, God is a loving God...He died so you don't have to. What else do you want from Him? Eternal life in Heaven? Sure! That's why God raised Jesus from the dead...so you CAN be with Him in heaven for all eternity. All you have to do is:

1. Receive the invitation...tell Him that you want to receive eternal life (by this, you're acknowledging Him as Lord and Savior, for you're asking Him for something that only He can give you)
2. Repent of your ways (let me give you a head start...you've questioned His faithfulness, denied His awesome gift, lived selfishly, etc...)
3. Put your faith into Him (you're doing this even as you're taking the time to talk with Him), and you'll receive it. Why is that so difficult to do?

Then begin reading the Bible, communicate (talk) with Jesus regularly, find a Church to fellowship with His other believers, and begin to learn from and follow Him.  

Then, if you still wonder about and begin to really care about those people in the remote parts of Africa who don’t know about Jesus, travel out to them and tell them about Him.  Then you won’t have to wonder, “What if…?”

---Pastor Andy