Heart for Missions

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27 NIV

Never did I think a girl that grew up in a small town of rural Kentucky would ever have a heart for missions. Let’s face it; I grew up in a tiny little place that had one blinking red light, a roller rink, and a main street that was lined up with lots of mom & pop stores.

I loved growing up in a small town and still wish I had a chance to raise my boys in that small town life, but God had other plans. When I was in high school my parents decided it would be a great time to start over–go on a great adventure per se–so we packed up our whole small town life and headed for the big city of Miami, Florida.

Oh yeah, you read that right, we went from one little blinky light town to the hustle and bustle of life in Miami. I had never been a part of so much diversity, so many cultures and so many people. The adjustment took a few years, but this was now my home. God, in His great goodness and mercy knew that I needed to get out of that small little world so that He could open my eyes to see that He was planting in me a Heart for Missions.

Fast forward a few years and I met my husband, also a southerner transplanted to South Florida. We got married and quickly started our family. Over the course of our married years God began a new work in our hearts and lives and called us both to ministry. It was an incredible adventure and we have seen so many highs and lows throughout the ten years we have been in ministry, but in the last four years God has stirred us up yet again and watered those seeds into our Heart for Missions.

My husband, a small town country boy from Alabama, has been to Cuba (twice), Guatemala (where he met our Compassion daughter Erika), and now Haiti (twice). I have gone to the Bahamas to work in an orphanage and even our oldest son started down the road to missions work this summer when he went to Haiti with my husband.

I have no idea what God is going to do next, but I do know that He is growing that seed right in front of our eyes…it’s an amazing thing to watch as He grows in our family a Heart for Missions.

How about you? Has He been creating a Heart for Missions in you?

Here are a few of the organizations that we serve with…

check them out, pray about it, then see what He has in store for you and your family!

Foreign Missions

Local Missions (South Florida)look for similar ministries in your area

Also…if you have any other great organizations that you serve with please leave a comment so we can find out more about them too!

Father God, open our eyes to see where you are leading us, open our hearts to be ready to receive the invitation from you and create in us a willing spirit to go where you send us. Create in us a Heart for Missions as we seek to serve those you place in our path. In Jesus Name, Amen.

6 Responses to Heart for Missions
  1. Lisa
    November 9, 2010 | 7:15 am

    God is good all the time. Each and everyone of us can go out into the Mission Field just by stepping out our own front door. Isnt that amazing! Its such a rewarding experience and its a win win situation.
    Thank you Melissa for reminding me to take a peek at other local missions I can be helping in. Off to google now!!

    • Mel's World with Melissa Mashburn
      January 5, 2011 | 8:00 pm

      Amen and Amen sweet friend…we are ALL called to serve those around us! Thanks so much for your encouragement girl! 🙂

  2. Linda
    November 10, 2010 | 8:18 am

    Thanks for sharing your inspirational story! 🙂

    Your asked us to share about other mission organizations:

    We worked with Wycliffe Bible Translators in both South America and Africa. My heart is very much in support of HEAL Africa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and with Rafiki Foundation which also works in Africa. I also highly recommend Amani ya Juu (it’s on Facebook, has a website, and a blog).

    There are so many worthy mission organizations to support! Thank you for helping to get word out.

    Linda

    • Mel's World with Melissa Mashburn
      January 5, 2011 | 8:01 pm

      Awesome, Awesome, Awesome…thanks so much Linda for sharing these other incredible organizations with us all!

  3. Melinda Velez
    November 10, 2010 | 1:00 pm

    I had the opposite. I was born in NYC and grew up in the Bronx. My parents moved me to a small town in Puerto Rico where at age 13 where I had cows as neighbors and roosters crowing at 5 am. I was traumatized to a degree. I had to switch to speaking Spanish full time and deal with a different school environment. I believe that those adjustments are key to what God will do later on in our lives. I also have a heart for missions. I have experienced alot of travel to South America for work and was blessed with two key mission trip experiences in Costa Rica with indigenous groups and Belo Horizonte, Brazil’s 3rd largest city through YWAM and Missionary Ventures. I’m ready for that next turn in the road – but it appears I’m going through my own personal life mission experiences here in the U.S.A. But I know God uses all things and experiences for good! Oh and I did live in Miami for 6 years after I returned to NYC. 🙂

    • Mel's World with Melissa Mashburn
      January 5, 2011 | 8:02 pm

      Wow…you did have the exact opposite, didn’t you Melinda…AND you lived in my back yard (practically speaking) for 6 years…woohoo! I love how God has moved you to the right place at the right time!