Do You Have "the Disease?"

I have a friend who is a fire safety engineer at our local university. He and I had sons on the same homeschool basketball team several years ago. Sometimes I would sit with him and his wife during away games. I watched him once looking carefully at the gym where our sons played. He was assessing the gym for the sprinkler system in the ceiling. Some people call that sort of thing “the disease,” always thinking in terms of one’s vocation, even when not on the job.

Remembering that prompted me to think about what people from other vocations look for if they have “the disease.” Do civil engineers assess the condition of bridges and roads when they drive through the countryside? Do social workers think about the best ways of helping the homeless they see in the streets? Do childcare workers think about how to take care of other people’s children when they see those kids misbehaving at the grocery store?

You could be someone who prays regularly for your missionaries and looks for ways to encourage them.

Can this be applied to Christians? Are we imagining and implementing ways to share the gospel with unbelievers we encounter at work or in the supermarket? Are we thinking of ways to support our missionaries who are on the field? Are we infected with this “disease?”

We don’t have to be evangelists, missionaries, or directors of a mission organization to have this kind of infection. Examine your heart.

Do you love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength? Do you rejoice when you reflect on all of God’s mighty works, especially your own redemption?

By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation, the hope of all the ends of earth and of the furthest seas. —Psalm 65:5

Do you shudder when you consider God’s wrath on those who live in rebellion against God?

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. —John 3:36

Do you miss your missionaries? Do you long to see them face to face? Can you imagine that they feel the same about their friends, families, and churches?

Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete. —2 John 12

Do you have this kind of disease?

You could be someone who has been “cured,” someone who doesn’t think regularly about eternal life, God’s wrath, or your missionaries.

Prayerfully, you could be someone who praises God every day for your escape from the destruction God has planned for those who don’t fear God. You could be someone who prays regularly for your missionaries and looks for ways to encourage them. Do you have “the disease?” Catch it and pass it on!