“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”   Matthew 28:  19-20

 

This passage of scripture is known as “The Great Commission” and is the last thing Jesus told his disciples before he ascended into heaven.  But how do Christian parents apply this to child rearing?

 

Are we expected to take our children to other nations?  

 

I do have one child who is taking the “Good News”  to other nations, but my other child has no desire to do so.  Does this mean he is not following “the Great Commission?”   Absolutely not.  Jeremy has been on two missions trips and both trips were to Mexico.  For the first trip, our Youth Group at church went during Spring Break.   He was 16 and we had to coax him into going.  The second trip to Mexico was a requirement to complete his Internship with Teen Mania and he also was able to play guitar during worship.  While both trips were ok, being a “missionary”  to a foreign country did not grab his heart.

 

Worship and playing the guitar is his passion.  Jeremy travels with the Acquire the Fire band and leads young people in worship.  He does view himself to be a missionary  to the youth of America but not to a foreign country.

 

What about your kids?  Are they missions minded?  If they are serving God and sharing His good news,  then yes they are.  It doesn’t matter if they are sharing in their neighborhood   or on the other side of the earth.   

 

How do you help them to become missions minded?  You simply share the gospel with them in your everyday life and they will follow your example. That’s what Jesus meant when He said to “teach them everything I have commanded.”   They do not have to go to the ends of the earth and forsake everything to follow “the Great Commission.”

 

People who are missions minded love God, love  people, and want to do everything possible to share the “good news”  whether in word or deed.