Many people do missions.  They set aside a specific time, maybe even multiple times, during the year to serve people in need.  It may be in close proximity to their home or it may be on the other side of the world, but it is intentional and beneficial to the world we live in.  So why say “Don’t do missions”?

Is there anything wrong with “doing missions”?  Not at all.  It is a beautiful thing and can make a huge, even life-changing, impact on someone’s life, both for the one serving and the ones being served.  Doing missions isn’t a bad thing, but it is limited to pieces of our lives when it is meant to be a lifestyle.  We go serve someone we may never see again and we come home excited about the impact it made on us, but then we go back to work.  We go back to school.  We go back to our normal, everyday lives only mentioning the impact, but not showing it to the ones we do life with.  Wouldn’t we make a greater impact if we took what we did during a short amount of time on a mission trip and applied it to each day of our lives?  Rice + Beans Ministries’ greatest aim is to meet people where they are, share the love of Christ and give hope that does not disappoint.  This isn’t limited to serving in Costa Rica, Brazil and the U.S.  It is a way of life that should intertwine into every soul we come in contact with.  But how do we get to a place where this becomes life and not just a part of our lives?  Here’s one example.

A while back, a team member from a Rabmin mission trip talked about how they wanted to take what they did in Costa Rica and apply it to what they do back home.  One of the ways Rabmin builds relationships is by delivering food to families in the community and praying over any needs they may have.  This team member thought about ways to bring this to her own community.  So she gathered up the youth at her church.  They made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and brought them to families in their own community.  This opened a door to build relationships with people throughout the community and pray over the needs in their own town.  This is what it looks like to not just “do missions”, but allow serving others to be the life we live.  As we like to say, “Go Live Love”.  This is just one small way to make a consistent impact on the world around us.  It doesn’t have to look the same for you.  There are many ways to serve others.  It can be as simple as making someone’s day easier.  Send encouraging messages to your friends.  Pay for a stranger’s coffee.  Befriend someone who doesn’t have any friends.  Look for needs around you and meet those needs with hope.  

Are you ready for serving others to be more than a time set aside, but a way of life?  We would love for you to leave us a comment below on how you plan to Go Live Love or ways you are already serving the ones around you each and every day.   Don’t just “do missions”.  Go live love!