Mark's #45 - Reckless Abandon: A Modern-Day Gospel Pioneer's Exploits Among The Most Difficult To Reach People

Since John recently read and reviewed this book here, I won't go into too much detail. I've always enjoyed missionary biographies.  These books challenge and encourage my own walk with Christ, remind me of the global call of the great commission (Mt. 28:19-20), and make me examine my life to see whether or not I believe what God says I should believe about life, death, eternity, and the worth of Jesus.  Most of these books detail the exploits of missionaries from long ago,  but in this book David Sitton tells his story of God's faithfulness in our time in areas like Papua New Guinea and Mexico. As such, the challenge to missions seems even more real and tangible.

I appreciate David's life and desire to show that Jesus is worth any sacrifice.  I also appreciate David's desire to help raise up and train young men and women to forsake everything to follow Jesus to the ends of the earth.

Read the book and be challenged and encouraged!

If you have never considered the possibility that God loves you and may have a wonderful plan for your death, perhaps you should (pg. 201).

You can check out the ministry David started here: http://toeverytribe.com/

JRF's #34 - Reckless Abandon by David Sitton

Beach Bum David Sitton met Jesus when he was 19 years old.  A year later he was in Papua New Guniea, ready to die for the glory of God amongst the unreached cannibals of that island.  Nearly 15 years later, after surviving years of beatings, near-decapitations, trials and more importantly after having seen God bring many unreached peoples to bow their knee to the Lord of Creation, David Sitton and his family's missionary visas were revoked and they suddenly found themselves back in the states wondering if God no longer had any use for them.  After a period of waiting on the Lord, a pastor seemed to provide an answer to their prayer for direction, "...What if the Lord wants to use your church planting experience on both sides of the ocean?...The great need of the hour is for more missionaries, but no just big numbers, we need the right kind of missionaries.  And how are we going to get the right kind of missionaries, if some of the right kind don't come home to train them"?  Out of that conversation, To Every Tribe Mission and the Center for Pioneer Church Planting was born.

David Sitton is a reminder that God is not looking for the wealthy or educated or skilled to join His club.  He is looking for the lost who are desperate for the Life He gives to those who see His infinite worth.  He is recruiting those who will joyfully obey not spend their days idly debating whether His clear commands pertain to them.

Sitton's life is a billboard for the truth that there is no risk in giving all for the sake of Jesus Christ.   A risk implies the possibility of loss and there is no loss for those who lose all for the sake of Christ, for " to live is Christ and to die is gain. " (Phil 1:21).

This book contains adventure, wisdom, theology, missiology and exhortation.  I recommend it to anyone who wants to take Jesus seriously.

"The one thing we cannot do is 'lose our lives' for the Gospel.  That is impossible. We can only 'gain our lives' if 'we lose them' and if we die physically, we gain them even quicker."