Your Holiday Journey
Adopt a WGM Mission Field
By Hubert Harriman, President
October 29, 2009
 Did Jesus feel homesick at the holidays?
I know that sounds like a silly question, but I ask it for an important reason that has to do with our own emotions during the holidays…and how we respond to them.
The holidays are full of emotions—one moment filled with joy as we marvel at what Jesus did for us, the next overwhelmed with parties, and the next saddened by memories of friends and family gone or far away.
Does Christmas have to be a time filled with self-focused emotion? For Jesus, Christmas was about a journey—leaving heaven to come to this earth and offer His life as a gift for us. If anyone had a right to be homesick, it would be Jesus, as He lay in a manger of a dirty stable after leaving the very presence of the Almighty!
In the November/December 2009 issue of The Call, WGM’s bimonthly magazine, Rev. Mark Purkey wrote about what it’s like to feel homesick at the holidays. He moved from the Pacific Northwest recently to WGM’s headquarters in Indiana—a very big change to be sure!
I don’t know what emotions Jesus may have felt during His years on this earth, but I do know this:
His emotions did not define His journey.
And this is the key question that His life challenges us to answer this holiday:
Will momentary situations and the emotions that come with them define the journey God has you on this Christmas?
I would like to suggest an alternative:
Pick one of WGM’s newest fields and adopt it as your “home” for this coming year.
During this past year WGM has opened strategic new fields in exciting places such as:
• Sudan, where political violence has left communities decimated and devastated...but where these affected peoples now receive help through initiatives such as WGM’s Mango Ministries.
• Peru, where less than 3 percent of Cusco’s population is evangelical Christian…but where WGM’s youth ministries are making exciting gains;
• Grenada, where the country continues to take strides forward after Hurricane Ivan…but where the time is ripe to equip islanders to take strides forward in Christ!
Will you consider following Jesus’ steps this Christmas and journeying to one of these countries through your prayers, your emotional focus, and through a special gift to support the missionary efforts underway there?
I guarantee that if you take up the challenge to partner with us in one of these countries, you will have times when you feel as if you are right there on the ground with our missionaries, reaching out to the hurting.
But this offer I am extending is not without risk:
Just as Jesus traveled to Earth and poured Himself out without reservation for 33 years, making one of these countries your new prayer and giving “home” will cost you emotionally, physically, and spiritually.
But that is what our life in Christ is all about...giving of ourselves to glorify the Savior and bring the lost to Him. In Mark 8:34-35 (NIV) Jesus proclaimed, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.”
Pouring ourselves out without reservation is part of what God intends for our holiday journey...and you know what? You’ll find that as you focus on others, any sad holiday emotions you might feel will fade away in the presence of Jesus.
So will you join Jesus on a journey and adopt one of our new mission fields this year? If you are ready for that step of sacrifice and service, I challenge you to begin with a year-end gift as part of your eternal investment in that field.
My best to you in Christ,
Hubert P. Harriman
P.S. What part of the world will you make your “home” in the upcoming holiday season? Would you consider Sudan, Peru, or Grenada—WGM’s newest fields?
 Click here to adopt a WGM field as your new “home.” Your gift today will help someone begin their spiritual journey with Christ.
Click here to schedule or join a work team to your new “home.” Are they waiting for you?
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