ETERNAL GOD, ESTABLISH THE WORK OF OUR HANDS
Psalm 90:17
The yardstick used to asses everything we do at NewLife Ethiopia is whether our plans and actions have eternal significance or not. Humanitarian work is useful for the here and now, but leveraged to bring people into right standing with God, it has eternal rewards.
Jen Wilkin, in her book None Like Him, succinctly captures this truth:
Here is a remarkable truth: God is able to bring eternal results from our time-bound efforts. This is what Jesus intimates when He tells us to store up treasure in heaven rather than on earth. When we invest our time in what has eternal significance, we store up treasures in heaven. This side of heaven, the only investments with eternal significance are people. We cannot take our stuff with us when we die, but, Lord willing, we may feed the hungry and clothe the needy in such a way that an eternal result is rendered.
- This is our calling when we enfold tiny abandoned babies into our care center and then find strong, Christian families to adopt them and introduce each little person to Jesus at an early age.
- When we feed the starving, the recipient knows the food comes to them because Jesus and Christ-followers love them. The church is there to not only provide maize but, more importantly, introduce them to the Bread of Life.
- In Muslim villages where there are no schools, missionaries teach the children to read followed by a lesson from Christ’s Holy Book, cultivating both mind and soul.
- Our Mana Gammachuu school invests time and money into 60 children to strengthen their bodies with nutritious food and challenge their minds to learn reading, writing and math. Bi-weekly chapel times share the amazing love Jesus has for them in fun, engaging ways.
- Our training center builds strong, biblical foundations into church leaders (all converts from Islam) to ensure the church plants have sustainability with godly pastors and evangelists.
Pondering Psalm 90:17, how aware are you that your days are numbered? How does your level of awareness affect the way you worship God? The way you love and serve others?