Each One... Own One

What are you committed to? Certainly there are many things — in all of our lives — that we are involved in, but what are the few things that we are truly and absolutely committed to?

By Jeff Petersen
Outreach and Missions Pastor

For many, your marriage, your kids, your family will come immediately to mind. If only everyone was truly committed to their family…what a different world it would be. Perhaps — hopefully — your relationship with God comes to mind. Our first and greatest assignment in life is to love Him with all that we are. Again, how different this world would be if only…

Some are committed to their careers. Some are committed to their cars. If we’re truly honest, most of us would have to admit that we are deeply committed to ourselves.

Our commitments are revealed in what we give ourselves to…our time, our energy, our thoughts, our resources.Where we “invest” our lives is where we find the commitments in our lives.

But…are we truly “owning” the commitments God has called us to?

I’ve often been amazed by what 2 Corinthians 5 tells us that God has “committed” to us. In verses 18-20 of that chapter, God makes it clear that He has literally committed to us the greatest news the world has ever heard. He says, “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

Amazing! The most important message the world could ever receive has been entrusted to people like me…and people like you. That is a humbling and sobering reality. So…if God has committed the message of reconciliation to you and me, are we committed to sharing the message of reconciliation with a lost world?

By the way, did you notice the scope of this calling as expressed in this passage? It’s the world. As followers of Christ and recipients of His grace, we have been entrusted with the world’s most significant calling… imploring people here in Lincoln and all over the earth to be reconciled to God.

Here at Lincoln Berean, we are intentionally and strategically involved in missional endeavors to do just that — both here in our city and region AND all around our world. We would desire that each person at LBC have a sense of entrustment, ownership, commitment to not just our local ministry but our global outreach as well. One of our key strategies toward this end is encouraging every LifeGroup to “own” one of our global mission fields — adopting that country with a view of being used by God to help reach that country. That goal can be advanced through prayer, through the support and encouragement of our missionary in that country, through short-term missions, and even through the raising up of additional long term global workers.

Each One Reach One is our focus together this year. As we think of simple steps that can have an enormous impact when we each get involved, we encourage you to think not only locally, but globally. What if part of our expression of our commitment to the Gospel would be…Each One Own One? Each believer, in the context of their LifeGroup, making a personal commitment to being concerned for and involved in the Good News going forth to a specific country in the world. Think of the enormous impact we could have together.

Are you truly committed to that which God has “committed” to you?