At the end of the day, many of the people that I have invested in have either rejected Christ or walked away from their previous commitment to him (sigh). Our current lives are no different. We are “front line” missionaries living among a lost people group. And what do I spend my days doing? Mainly pulling my hair out trying to figure out how to write the tones of this difficult language. It seems like we may be a lifetime away from reaping here.

A few years ago I was talking to a missionary that had worked for ~20 years with a people group in the Philippines. He and his wife had labored diligently to translate the Bible into a minority language, working along the way to teach the people about Jesus, meeting their physical needs, and loving them deeply. After they had finished the New Testament they printed each precious page, shipped the copies to their village, and…watched them sit on the shelf. After all their labors, no one was interested.

How tragic! How difficult! Can you imagine working for so long among a lost people, dealing with their sin and your own sin in response, missing your family and friends, and for what? An unused Bible?

Reapers and Sowers

I actually don’t find it too hard to imagine how this missionary felt. Dave and I, sometimes together, sometimes separately, have led multiple evangelistic Bible studies. We have even studied with the same people in our home for years at a time. I can honestly say that since my graduation from college, there has never been an extended period of time where I have not actively taught the Bible to either new believers or unbelievers.

However, at the end of the day, many of the people that I have invested in have either rejected Christ or walked away from their previous commitment to him (sigh). Our current lives are no different. We are “front line” missionaries living among a lost people group. And what do I spend my days doing? Mainly pulling my hair out trying to figure out how to write the tones of this difficult language. It seems like we may be a lifetime away from reaping here.

But this is not the case for everyone. Many missionaries, evangelists, and moms and dads have had great joy in leading many to Christ. My father is a great example of this. God has given my dad an amazing gift of evangelism. Though never employed as a minister, he honestly cannot help but to lead people to Christ. Not too long ago he bought a car off of Craigslist and, when picking up the car, knelt beside a man as he prayed to receive Christ. What an incredible gift!

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