The "Sent" of Delight

My wife, Kristin, and I recently met a new friend who shared with us her and her husband’s story, beginning from the brink of separation decades ago. But then they met Jesus, here in our Hershey area at a conference in the hotel where he worked. All these years later, their story tells of God’s faithfulness to and through them as He sent them to serve Him in distant lands. They had returned, and he has now entered the Lord’s presence after illness. She was by his side the whole way. After such a long obedience in marriage and mission, her gratitude radiated through her grief in sharing their story with us, anticipating what’s ahead with God’s anointing that remains on her. She herself continues to support workers by debriefing missionaries. We delighted in Him together!

All those years ago, a now elderly neighbor on our street spiritually adopted them as a couple and nurtured them in their young faith. She had recently returned to visit this neighbor of ours, and through mutual friends from another town, learned that we lived on the same street as this neighbor. Our mutual friends came from out of town and picked her up at our neighbors and brought her up the street to our house!

So we found ourselves together at our table, and prompted by our mutual friend, Kristin and I then told our new friend our story of God’s victory by His grace in His beautiful servant and our daughter, Victoria Grace. After our sharing, our new friend summarized what she was hearing with what she and her husband heard from God many years ago in what Jesus said to Paul on the road to Damascus—He has appointed us as “servant and a witness” (Acts 26:16). A servant belongs to Him (being), and a witness is sent by Him (doing). Again, we delighted in Him together!

Lately, I’ve again sensed a kind of first-love stirring to be and to do as His sent ones (servant and witness) from our neighborhood to the nations. Some of the deepest delight I’ve experienced in this journey has surrounded the understanding and application of sending, both His and ours (consider the mutual delight of Jesus and His followers in the report they bring back after He sent out the 70 in Luke 10:17–21)!

Our SPM team delights in Him together by serving sent ones as sent ones ourselves. It's our hope that the care we provide prays “earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest” (Luke 10:2).