On a Mission

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy doing this blog. However, there is something about realizing the importance of regularly making posts, and the minor amount of stress that comes with trying to create content.

Today, after work, I was walking back to my car. Now, in my town, the fires from eastern Oregon gave us the present of smoke, rendering the sky and the sun a nice orange hue. However, today, after a brief downpour, the skies opened up, showing the lovely light blues interrupted by the occasional wispy whites. The sidewalk was the nice wet sidewalks that us western Oregonians are so used to, so, I grabbed my smartphone and took the shot.

The composition isn't great. The dynamic range is pretty meh (which is honestly why I converted it to B&W). Yet, I kind of like it. Yes, I do wish that the sidewalk was more geometric (the center seam isn't perpendicular with the cross seams which REALLY annoys me), but the photo captures a unique view, and view that I wouldn't have gotten if I wasn't thinking about making another blog post. This shot would not have happened if I wasn't on a mission.

We as Christians are pretty familiar with the idea of being on a mission (there's the great pickup line: "Hey girl, do you want to join me in my purpose driven life?"). But, so often we neglect to actually live like we're on a mission. The Bible talks about how we are soldiers, how we are athletes, how we are farmers. In 2 Timothy 2, Paul tells Timothy: "No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops." (v. 4-6, ESV). A soldier doesn't do whatever he wants; he follows commands. An athlete doesn't eat whatever he wants and play how he wants; he trains and he follows rules and guidelines. A farmer can't plow and plant whenever he wants to; he does these tasks with intentionality.

As Christians, we don't do things willy-nilly. We are on a mission. We are goal focused. And our goal? Bringing glory to our Father. The more we are mission minded, the easier it will be for us to recognize opportunities when they present themselves, or rather when God presents them to us. Is it easy to do so? Of course not, but it does get easier the more we do it.

So, remember Christian. You are on a mission. Live it out.

2 Corinthians 9:24
 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.