Mission Livin’: What is living?”

John 20: 19-20

19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

It was just another Monday morning when Lisa, a school nurse in her small Ontario town, found herself sitting in her car longer than usual. She was parked outside the elementary school, watching the drizzle streak across her windshield. Something in her spirit was unsettled, not dramatic, just… restless. The week before, one of the kids, a quiet boy named Marco, had come into her office four times, not for any serious injury, but with stomach aches, headaches, and questions about nothing. Lisa had the sense that it wasn’t his body that hurt; it was his heart. But she didn’t know what to do. She thought, “I’m not a therapist. I’m not a pastor. I just hand out Band-Aids and Tylenol.”
 
And then Romans 12:2 came to her mind: "Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." She whispered a prayer: “Lord, show me what Your will is today. In this school. In this office. With these children.” That’s what we mean by Mission Livin’. You see, somewhere along the way, many of us came to believe that “mission” is something you do far away, with a plane ticket and a team T-shirt. But Jesus never said, “As the Father sent me, I am sending you… on a short-term trip.” He said, “I am sending you.” Period. Paul takes that calling further in Romans 12:2. He reminds us that the key to discerning God’s will is not working harder or waiting longer. It’s being transformed, from the inside out. And that transformation begins in the renewing of our minds.
 
But transformation without strategy is like having a destination without directions. That’s where a lesser-known verse from the Old Testament steps in: 1 Chronicles 12:32. In a list of tribes allying behind King David, we read about the men of Issachar. It says: "They understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take." Did you catch that? They understood what was going on around them, and they knew what to do. They didn’t just have passion, they had discernment. They didn’t just pray—they planned. They weren’t swayed by panic or pressure. They read the moment and responded with wisdom.
 
We need that Issachar mindset today. We live in a time when our culture is saturated with information but starving for wisdom. We're busy but often aimless. Many Christians feel stuck, longing for a life of purpose, but unsure where to start. So let’s follow a biblical model:
 

1. Name your current state.
2. Where are you right now, spiritually, emotionally, relationally? What spaces do you already inhabit: your home, your job, your neighborhood? These are not interruptions. They are your mission fields.
3. Imagine the desired state.

What would it look like if God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will were fully present in those spaces? What would peace in your home look like? Or justice at your job? Or compassion in your neighborhood?

1. Build a strategy to get there.

That’s what transformation requires: not just emotion, but intention. Not just desire, but direction. Let me tell you about John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. He lived in a time of religious stagnation and deep social inequality. Many churches were comfortable, insulated, and irrelevant to the poor. But Wesley looked at the signs of the times, and he noticed the spiritual hunger in the streets and the despair in the working class. And he planned. He began preaching in the open air. He formed small groups, called class meetings, where people didn’t just study the Bible but asked each other, “How is it with your soul?” and “Whom have you helped this week?”
 
Wesley didn’t wait for revival to come to the cathedral. He brought the gospel to the coal mines. That wasn’t a whim; it was a strategy. A Spirit-breathed, scripture-soaked, time-tested strategy. He understood the signs of the times and knew what to do.
 
What about you? What if you took 15 minutes this week to create your own Mission Field Map? Just draw three columns:
 

• Where you go (home, work, grocery store, school)
• Who you see (family, coworkers, neighbors, strangers)
• What God might want to do there (healing, encouragement, witness)

 
That’s how you move from current state to desired future, with a mind renewed by Scripture and a heart open to the Spirit. That’s how Mission Livin’ becomes more than a sermon; it becomes your lifestyle.
 
Back to Lisa in the parking lot. That morning, she didn’t do anything heroic. She simply walked into school, stopped by Marco’s classroom, and asked the teacher if she could see him for a moment. When he came to her office, she didn’t offer a solution, just presence. “I don’t think you’re sick,” she said softly. “But I do think you might be sad. And that’s okay. I’m here for you. And I’ll keep being here.” He didn’t say much. But he smiled. And he came back the next day. That’s Mission Livin’. That’s what happens when a renewed mind meets a missional heart and a strategic spirit.