Developing the Eyes for Mission

What is our mission? What is God calling us to do? As a Church? As individual Christians?

One congregation decided to "adopt" the street on which their church was located. They would look to address the needs of the people in their neighborhood. As it happens the needs of this particular neighborhood were/are obvious. 30-40% of the population tests positive for HIV/AIDS. Of course, most people in this neighborhood haven't taken the test. So the percentages are probably higher.

You may have already guessed that this congregation is not located in the United States. It is the Kwa Mashu United Congregational Church of Southern Africa located in the third largest township in the Republic of South Africa(Kwa Mashu), just outside of Durban. (Click on the Common Global Ministries link to learn more about South Africa, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, and the work of our partner churches and missionaries.)

The congregation adopted an agressive plan to address the horrific affects of this disease. An entire segment of South African society, the middle generation, is being wiped out, leaving grandparents to look after young children.

The congregation's vision is to help creat an HIV/AIDS-free generation. They have very few resources to do this. They have the support of our UCC sponsored missionary, Scott Couper, as well as some money from the HIV/AIDS Desk that he administers on behalf of the UCCSA denomination. But they have no money, only faith. They "saw" that people were dying all around them and they sought to promote life around their neighborhood. They are putting their faith to work.

"This is all well and good for them," you might be thinking, "but what about us? We don't have such things as HIV/AIDS pandemics in our neighborhood." Yes, thank God, that's probably true. But every neighborhood has something that threatens to destroy the fabric of life.

Every neighborhood has something that, if left untended, will lead to the death of the spirit if not the death of the body of someone nearby. It could be anger over the closing of the major source of employment. It could be fear of some terrorist's dirty trick, or of some disease. It could be loneliness because one has lost a spouse or partner, or because of moving to a new place with no friends. It could surface as alcoholism, domestic violence, or neglect of family members. It could be many things, but "it" can lead to devastating wounds in the make up of any neighborhood.

With such thoughts I remember the question that God demanded Moses pose to the Israelites in the wilderness. "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him..." (Deut. 30:19-20) The Good News of God in Christ is that God loves the world, that God loves each of us, and that God calls us as followers of Christ to a ministry of reconciliation to God and to each other.

I believe that God has faith in us to see the needs of the world that God loves and to act faithfully to share the love of God in ways that promote life and the living. What do you think?