Our church family looks forward to hosting a missions appointee to Togo on Sunday.
Two years ago, I made a missions trip to Togo, Africa. I went with the experienced missionaries of ABWE. I was in good hands. Still, it is a long way from Stillman Valley, IL to Mango. And, I had to ask, “Is it responsible to risk going to a remote part of Africa?”
Relative to a far riskier ministry, Martin Luther once spoke to whether or not Christians should take chances ministering to those with the bubonic plague. Though, the worst of the plague was in 1350, it was still around in Luther’s day. On August 2, 1527, it was discovered in Wittenberg. Near panic ensued. The University was closed and the city evacuated. Luther, however, stayed and busied himself with pastoral ministries and caring for the sick.
People encouraged Luther to speak to whether or not Christians should risk the plague to minister to the sick. That November, Luther summarized his thoughts for a pastor friend in Breslau. He did not think everyone needed to stay, but he did argue that those on whom the sick person is dependent should remain.
This I well know, that if it were Christ or his mother who were laid low by illness, everybody would be so solicitous and would gladly become a servant or helper. Everyone would want to be bold and fearless; nobody would flee but everyone would come running . . . If you wish to serve Christ and to wait on him, very well, you have your sick neighbor close at hand. Go to him and serve him, and you will surely find Christ in him. (Martin Luther’s Basic Theological Writings, edited by Lull. Background information also comes from Lull.
In Mango, Togo, there is scarcely any Gospel witness or medical care. I am persuaded that believers who hear God’s call to touch Togo, will one day know that they did a lot for for the least, even for our Lord himself (Matthew 25:40). The picture I frequently post of the little girl we call at our house, “Miss Mango,” is the face I have in mind. She’s worth the risk in her own right, but all the more when we remember our Lord’s words.
And the King will answer them, “Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” (Matt 25:40).
