The Mission

[I was unable to post yesterday, so this is yesterdays reading and post]

Daily Reading: Genesis 19:15-16; Psalm 3; Luke 7

“To what can I compare the people of this generation?” Jesus asked. 

“How can I describe them.” (Luke 7:31)

Frantz Fanon, a poet and marxist philosopher, wrote in one of his works a quote that I have often heard repeated, “Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfill it, or betray it.” While I do not believe in the overall philosophy of Fanon I certainly believe he captured an observable truth of all humanity. We each are called to make a contribution to the world with the resources of our age and this contribution is not for our glory, but for a greater good. 

As a middle aged Christ follower I find myself often asking myself the question, what are they going to say about my generation? How will future generations describe us? Have we been faithful with the resources given to our time to discover our mission and fulfill it, or have we wasted our resources on the meaningless idols of self satisfaction? The mission for the disciple always remains the same and can be summed up in two of the New Testaments great passages; the first being the Great Commandment, 

Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39)

The second being the Great Commission,

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even 

to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

If I take these two passages to heart than I believe that my generation is mandated to use the resources available to us to, “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” (Mission of the UMC) While the mission remains the same, the resources, challenges and opportunities change with each generation.  Within our community we have unbelievable resources to impact change within the whole of our community. We have time resources, education, life experiences and we have financial resources. 

What will our children and our children’s children say about our generation? Will they call us faithful or will they work to clean up our mess?  

Lord, Help me and my generation live faithfully, with the resources given to us, into our mission of making disciples for the transformation of the world.  Amen.