Urbana 2000 Webcast

Missionary or Mission field?

In the midst of corporate celebration, keynote speaker George Verwer entered the stage carrying a large rubber globe and wearing a jacket made from a world map. With these props he expanded our worship by relating some of the great things God is doing around the world. Holding the globe above his head, he began to pray for several nations. The countries he lifted before Jesus followed no choreographed pattern. He simply prayed for the nations as he saw them on the globe in his hands.

First he prayed for Sudan, mentioning the suffering millions there. Then his finger drifted and he was stirred to pray for Afghanistan, that the Lord would send missionaries to that closed country. Then his eye caught Indonesia and he brought before Jesus the turmoil there. His love for and understanding of each country was obvious, so we soon realized that the giant globe was not merely a gimmick but rather it revealed the inner heart of a man who had spent years of his life on his knees, quietly interceding for Jesus' kingdom to come. The love that he has for Jesus, the earnestness of his prayers, and his knowledge of Christ's kingdom, all combined to make us grateful for his appearance tonight.

In describing needs and struggles from around the globe, George emphasized, "we are not here tonight to complain. Tonight we are here to celebrate!" He then gave us a glimpse of God's work around the world, from the phenomenal growth of the church in Korea to the spiritual richness of the sending churches of Africa in spite of their financial poverty.

George, the founder of Operation Mobilization, is known as an international missions leader. Despite his extraordinary years in ministry and enormous influence on people's lives, it was his deep humility and love for God that was most evident.

In a quote that perfectly captured the tone of the man and his talk, George reminded us, "Everyone here is either a missionary or a mission field. There is no middle ground."

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