A SENSE OF MISSION
Opening Prayer
Lord, give me a mission for You.
Read 2 CHRONICLES 6:1–11
6 Then Solomon said, “The Lord has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; 2 I have built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.”
3 While the whole assembly of Israel was standing there, the king turned around and blessed them. 4 Then he said:
“Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, who with his hands has fulfilled what he promised with his mouth to my father David. For he said, 5 ‘Since the day I brought my people out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city in any tribe of Israel to have a temple built so that my Name might be there, nor have I chosen anyone to be ruler over my people Israel. 6 But now I have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, and I have chosen David to rule my people Israel.’
7 “My father David had it in his heart to build a temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 8 But the Lord said to my father David, ‘You did well to have it in your heart to build a temple for my Name. 9 Nevertheless, you are not the one to build the temple, but your son, your own flesh and blood—he is the one who will build the temple for my Name.’
10 “The Lord has kept the promise he made. I have succeeded David my father and now I sit on the throne of Israel, just as the Lord promised, and I have built the temple for the Name of the Lord, the God of Israel. 11 There I have placed the ark, in which is the covenant of the Lord that he made with the people of Israel.”
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
How would you describe your mission in life? Have you found it, achieved it, lost it? Why?
Think Further
One of my first assignments as an SU staff person years ago was to hand out copies of Encounter with God to students at InterVarsity’s Urbana Mission Conference in the US. I quickly got bored with the repetitive task and began joking that my goal was to “get rid of these things,” so I began giving two or three copies to each person. On the last day of the conference, Vera, one of my colleagues and a retired missionary, took me aside and exclaimed, “Whitney! Where’s your sense of mission?” To this day, Vera’s loving rebuke is still ringing in my ears. By contrast, Solomon has a serious sense of mission and we see this reflected in his speech to “the whole assembly of Israel” (3). He knows his momentous task, that is, building a special place for God’s presence to dwell on earth.
What about us? Most of us don’t have the royal pedigree or high calling of Solomon, so does that mean we don’t qualify for a significant assignment? Maybe instead of waiting for a spectacular mission from God, a more reasonable approach would be to ask God to use us in our everyday routine—at the job, a role at the church, or in our family’s life. Entering each day armed with the knowledge that we are commissioned by God transforms everything we do into an opportunity to make a difference for him.
There is, however, one thing Solomon has in common with the rest of us. Centuries ago Solomon knew that trusting God’s promises is the secret to effectiveness (4,10), and that’s no less true today.
Apply
Christian author Henry Blackaby wrote, “Find out where God is working and join him.” How might that affect your day? Your week? Your life?
Closing prayer
Lord, like Solomon, we understand that there is no spiritual effectiveness apart from faith in Your promises.
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