This summer we had a number of visitors, who had previously invested time serving with EA, again carve out space, often in the midst of very busy summer schedules, to return to labor alongside our staff, as we serve the local church.
Two reasons come to mind:
1. There is joy in sacrificial service through “good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)
Pastor John MacArthur alludes to the joy of Kingdom Work in his book, Alone with God, stating:
“Many of us come to God with personal pronouns in our prayers: I, me and my. We tell The Lord about our needs and problems without thinking of others in the body of Christ. But we need to be willing to sacrifice what seems best for ourselves because God has a greater plan for the whole.”
2. There is contentment in participation in the ongoing ministry of the local church as it “does good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of faith.” (Galatians 6:10)
Overwhelmingly, Empowering Action’s visiting service teams join in with existing ministry. They don’t come to do FOR the local church, but serve WITH the local body of Christ. This encourages both the American and national church, as well as dispels the notion of all solutions/resources/expertise originating in the U.S. and the falsely perceived need for the American to ride in on the white horse and save the day.
As I read this letter below from one such recent visitor, I could identify amongst his reflections this joy of sacrificial service and contentment from participation in the strategic efforts of the global church.
“I had a tremendous experience this year on my third trip to Dominican Republic with Empowering Action. This year was different for me because rather than serving with my own church from New Jersey, I had the opportunity to serve alongside two new churches as a member of the EA team. Throughout the service trip I had the pleasure of experiencing the strong relationship between the U.S. churches and EA’s local church partner – Iglesia de Convertidos a Cristo. As a result of this collaboration, I was able to interact with many great people of God. In addition, this fellowship gave me the opportunity to be able to grow in the gospel, while also serving and introducing new people to the Word of God. It was a pleasure to serve with EA’s staff and I look forward to the opportunity to return in the future”
– Jacob Zirinsky, St. Lawrence University
