Teaching Our Children to Live Globally, Locally

This is a guest post contributed by Lara Chomout. You can learn more about Lara in her bio at the bottom of her post.

I have but one passion - it is He, it is He alone. The world is the field and the field is the world; and henceforth that country shall be my home where I can be most used in winning souls for Christ. - Nicolaus von  Zinzendorf

We are all called

In Matthew 28, Jesus directs his disciples to share the gospel and make disciples. Often, we feel the title “missionary” is only reserved for those who live across the globe - but the truth is, we are all called as believers in Jesus Christ to do this very thing - no matter where we live, what our vocation is, or what our day to day looks like. 

I always imagined I would live overseas, planting seeds of the gospel in foreign soil - instead, God has me at my house in a small city in Texas, with my children - but I am still called. 

As I disciple my children, my hope is that they would become followers of Jesus who disciple others. Of course, we must remember 1 Corinthians 3:6 - “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave growth.” 

We are called to plant or water the seeds of discipleship in the hearts and minds of our children and those around us, but it is God who gives growth to those seeds.

Global Local

When I was younger, I was taught the idea of living globally, locally. Despite having a fun ring to the phrase, it was a simple way to remember that even if we live in the states, God has brought many people from almost every nationality to our country. Not only that, no matter where we go, there will be someone who hasn’t truly heard the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

My prayer for myself and my children is that we would see people the way God sees them. I pray we would love others and fall in love with the things they love - whether that is their food, their traditions, while sharing how much Jesus loves everything about them too. 

Only God knows the impact this could have on one family legacy - who could take the truth of the gospel back to their own people and their own country. Yes, some of us are called to move across the world, and some of us are called to stay and reach the nations from our home city.

Raising Global Local Children

Learning about other cultures and places only draws my own heart to love the people from those places, and really to love ALL people more. I know how to pray specific prayers and I am drawn to know more from those who live, have lived there or have family roots in those countries. 

This is one of the reasons I absolutely love using On Mission magazine with my children. Together we can learn about the culture of a people-group, and we know how to pray for them. I also believe it stirs up my children’s hearts and minds to know that we serve a God who loves all people from all nations - and even though we may look different, we are all made in the image of God. I truly believe learning about other countries and cultures allows us to see people in a new and beautiful light. Our differences don’t divide us - but truly can bring us together when we seek to learn more about each other.

I also long to teach my children to prayer walk the neighborhood we live in - just as many missionaries do overseas. God softens our hearts and minds to see people a little differently when we start to pray specifically for the people around us - the man who walks his dog daily, the lady working in her yard, the children playing in the driveway. Pray specific prayers with your children for those around you - and pray God would bring those around you to know who He is and bring those you’re meant to build relationships with into your path.

I encourage you to pray that your eyes would be open to the people around you - and in so doing, you would be able to experience new cultures, a new heart to love people and to pass along the passion of loving the people God made and sharing the gospel tory of Jesus with them to our children. We are all called to share the good news, we are all missionaries - and I truly have no doubts that God can use us where we are for a global impact.

Lara is a homeschool mom of two in West Texas. She is a graduate of Angelo State University with a B.A. in Mass Media with a focus in Journalism and a B.A. in German. She has a heart for sharing the gospel of Jesus to those near and far who have never heard his name. She blogs at Little School on Avondale and you can find her on Instagram and Facebook.