Do It Because It Is Better For You

We are rational beings.  Bear with me, I’m not talking specifically about your brother who always makes bad decisions, or wacky Uncle Jerry.  In general, we can take cost and benefit into mind and make decisions that logically will bring us the greatest good.  We make Pro and Con lists, scour the internet for the best deal and even when advertising promises that we can have it all, we know that sometimes, we need to choose the great over the good.

I think about this when people say things to me like “I can’t believe you are leaving everything and going to be a missionary, I could never do that!”  How do you answer that? “Yup, I’m pretty awesome and sacrificial.” Or perhaps “I’m so glad you alerted me to how dumb this idea is."  "Heidi, cancel those tickets!” 

The truth is they have no idea how excited we are and how blessed and even selfish we sometimes feel about being able to live for Jesus in this way.  No doubt, there are some big items on the Con list; leaving family and friends is hard, learning languages is hard, hot and humid is hard, different food is hard, relying on God and the support of other Christians to live is hard, making your kid do all of these same things is really hard!  But the Pro side so outweighs the Con that it is no contest.  Making new friends is great, seeing the joy on a person’s face because they finally have a church is great, hugging an orphaned street kid that may have never felt love from an adult is great, watching someone change because Jesus transformed their heart and used you to disciple them is great, your kid seeing God’s world and the cultures he created first hand is great, knowing that your work will have lasting, even eternal consequence is really great! 

I fully believe that we should be laying up treasures in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20) and keeping our focus on eternity.  (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)  I know that Jesus said that we should deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow him (Luke 9:24) and that suffering is to be expected for the Christian. (Matthew 24:9) (1 Peter 4:12-19) However, Jesus also wants our joy to be full. (John 15:11)  Don’t think I’m going all “name it and claim it,” but I think he wants us to experience this joy now. 

How do we get this full joy?  Jesus says “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.” (John 15:10) Obedience is where the joy comes from.  Jesus doesn’t give us commands to make us sad, burdened, beat down, miserable wretches on a sacrificial treadmill trying to earn his favor and our way into heaven.  Just the opposite, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”  (Galatians 5:1) We don’t have to keep trying to satisfy God, because Jesus already did that; but we also don’t have to keep satisfying our flesh because Jesus can give us new desires and they are better!  Trust me when I say that I get more joy out of following Jesus than I ever did out of satisfying a fleshy desire.  In fact, one of Jesus’ commands is to “Rejoice and be glad!” (Matthew 5:12)

What I’m telling you is that by obeying Jesus, you can find joy.  I don’t expect you to read this article and buy a plane ticket to join our family in Manila.  (Though if the seed is planted, call me up and we will water that seed together!)  God probably has other plans for your life.  There are many ways for you to obey Jesus right where you are, lay up treasures in heaven, and taste abundant joy.

Here are some practical ways that you can make a choice to work for God’s Kingdom and be a Partner in what he is doing in our family and in the Philippines.

·       Sacrifice eating out once a month.  Instead, take the $100 or so that it costs to feed a family of four at Outback Steakhouse, buy rice, chicken and an Adobo seasoning packet, cook an authentic Filipino meal and spend time at home with your family talking about food, culture, missionaries, and serving people in your own community.  Better yet, invite someone over and tell them about what God is doing in the Philippines.

·       Our local theater charges $11.00 for an adult movie ticket.  Of course, that doesn’t include 3D or popcorn and a soda.  So, if you barebones it with a family of 4, it cost close to $50.  Instead, go to the library and check out the book “dos & don’ts in the Philippines.”  Then spend your evening learning about the differences between cultures and laughing and praying for us as we try to navigate without offending.  

·       Cancel cable and stop paying for all of those channels you never watch or watch too much.  Trust me, making this move brought our family much joy and saved us about $100 each month.  Instead, sit down as a family and search “Tagalog” on YouTube.  Watch a free lesson, listen to a song, or watch a movie in the Filipino language and pray for us as we try to go to the market or lead a Bible study in Tagalog.

·       Coca-Cola put their advertising budget on hold in the Philippines and instead they are committing the money to Typhoon relief.  I’m sure this is not their intent, but see what happens if you reduce or cut out your soft drink or coffee consumption. 

My hope is that these ideas will enrich your life and you won’t think of them as a sacrifice, but realize that there is more to live for than filling our bellies and our minds with temporary pleasures that can’t hold a candle to the joy available to us in Jesus.  I’m convinced that God wants more for us and we can’t stop until we reach out for it, leaving behind the rest that just doesn’t measure up. 

All of these suggestions are designed to save money in your family budget, please consider committing that money to partner monthly with our family at worldteam.org/givenow