Stories at The Well
WELL STORIES
Well Known: The Middle East
Our advice; stop thinking it's someone else's job and ask God how you can be that laborer, whether here or there. Instead of asking for answers to prayer, ask who is the answer to the prayer; because often, we are. Americans have boxed in the concept of who can be a missionary, but the truth is, we’re all capable, it just looks different depending on who you are.
One thing that gets neglected, you know, we have heard people say, “I know it’s not much, but I can pray for you,” and that—we think the church, people discredit the power of it. You shouldn’t see prayer as an add–on or a side thing; prayer is the work, a form of participation. And there’s so much you can pray for; for laborers, growth for the gospel seeds that have been planted, etc.
If you are able to use hours of your time praying and participating in God's mission to bring the world to himself? That's the work, praying that God does something. You can evangelize, you can plant seeds, but it's God who intercedes and gives the growth.
Get connected with our missions team to see how you can do that better. Ask God, “am I one of the laborers?,” and pray with your hands out. That’ll have an impact globally whether the fruit of that is seen in a month, or in a decade. How can someone hear if no one tells? But how can the teller go if they aren't sent? The first step is sending, and there are people here. Help someone support-raise, and hear their story. Help them grow a heart for the ones they are going to.
There are currently 3.4 billion people who have never heard the gospel.
We think the only mistake would be to not take the next step. It wasn't like God said to us, “I want you to go to the Middle East for nine years.” It was a twinge in our hearts that pressed upon our care for people, followed by us asking Him what else he wanted us to do. It was a lot of small steps. We'd challenge people to take that next step and see; go on a short-term trip. Or maybe the Lord is opening your heart to love on your co-worker who's from an unreached people group, or, expanding your mind to learn about a different culture.
Maybe he wants you to do something financially and support a missionary. Just ask him, “Lord, what do you want me to do?” And be open to hearing that the answer might be to go somewhere.
Sometimes people get the call for long-term work while serving on a short term trip. It can give you clarity and be life-changing; you also get to see a part of the world you might not have seen otherwise.
There are different goals on short-term trips; street evangelism, prayer-walking, equipping local leaders; etc. Exploring these avenues can give the Spirit time to open your eyes—it’s putting yourself in a place where the Lord can work in your heart.
Especially places with unreached people groups.
When you’re talking about unreached people groups that means a country's population that is less than 2% christian, as a whole. Here’s the difference: in Austin, you could visit a random cafe for lunch and odds are you’ll meet at least one person who is a Christian. Whether they share the gospel with you is another story, but at least you can meet them.
In an unreached people group, you’d have to meet over 5000 people before you meet a fellow christian. The vast majority of their population will be born, live, and die without ever having had the opportunity to hear the gospel. There’s no friend who believes, no church down the street, no anything.
That’s why we want to go to an unreached people group. If there was even one village, one city where no one has even had the chance to say “Yes” to Jesus—to me, it’s the greatest injustice that I’ve met Jesus, and someone else has never even heard of him. There are currently 3.4 billion people who have never heard the gospel. That’s almost half the world’s population. It’s a sad and mind-blowing figure.
And so we’re glad to be a part of The Well—a church whose mission prioritizes sending to unreached people, because we want to see every nation, tribe and tongue worshiping God, and half the world doesn't even have the chance. We’re grateful for the opportunity to go, and the support that everyone has given us.
With Love, The T Family
