Much of what I aim to cultivate in this space is focused on the inward journey, however, really, the heart behind Simply on Mission is the outward journey: sharing the love and grace of God in a way that overflows from a place of true identity. In other words, it looks like compassion, mercy, forgiveness, and grace in our relationships and how we engage the world (i.e. being close to the brokenhearted, remembering the poor, standing with the oppressed and downtrodden, etc.). The thing is: we are used to doing. Especially in our western culture, we measure our worth by our literal or metaphorical resumés, and when we do that, we often begin to believe the lies of our false self: identity declarations that come from hurt, unhealth, legalistic religion, and pride. That is the ‘why’ of the inward journey: to hear again, as children, our identity from the Father, and to experience the love that we are created for – a love that isn’t based on what we do or don’t do, but rather, it is based on who He is. I believe that what is integral to this process is building a (best) friendship with the Holy Spirit.
The Helper
One of my dear friends, Joe Johnson, shared:
“I am praying often ‘Jesus, help’. Jesus promises us another Helper, ‘allos parakletos’, exactly like Jesus. (John 14:16, 26; 15:26;16:7) Helper is my favorite word for Holy Spirit.”
I’m finding that “Helper” has become one of my favorite words for Holy Spirit as well. Something that keeps coming to mind is something that Fred Rogers once said in a statement,
“My mother used to say to me, a long time ago; whenever there would be any catastrophe in the movies or on the air, she would say, ‘Always look for the helpers. There will always be helpers’…Because if you look for the helpers you’ll know that there’s hope.”
I believe that there is something within us that deeply resonates when we see this kind of hope. Something we often see after natural disasters or other great tragedies are people rushing to be a part of rescue efforts. I believe something within us stirs and we want to be a part of that kind of mission. However, here is the thing: if you want to be a part of the mission, you must move your feet. And the encouragement that I want to give others, is that if you want to be a helper, then be filled with The Helper, Holy Spirit. Because the rubble and disasters that people often need to be pulled from aren’t always obvious (sometimes they are, but oftentimes not), sometimes it’s the rubble of fear, or of loneliness and isolation, sometimes it’s anxiety, and sometimes it’s grief. I’m amazed at how the seemingly small moments of obedience can be life changing. That’s what being “simply on mission” is about: having hearts postured to hear the leading of the Helper, and to follow him into those places where He invites us to go.
Here is an invitation from A.W. Tozer, that I often remember:
“Let us practice the fine art of making every work a priestly ministration. Let us believe that God is in all our simple deeds and learn to find him there.”
Praxis
Invite the Lord to come and fill you, and to open your eyes to see ways to help today. Maybe that means volunteering somewhere, or maybe that means something even more simple – like doing something kind for your next door neighbor. Even (especially) the ‘simple deeds’ that we do can hold an awareness of the Lord’s presence.
My prayer for us today,
“Holy Spirit,
Helper,
Come and fill us
That we would carry Your help and hope
To those who need it today. Amen.”