According to the United Nations, there are 195 recognized nations on earth. However, if you just do a quick google search, you will find that there are anywhere from 193 nations, all the way up to around 240. The discrepancy comes by way of disputed zones and nations that hold either full or partial sovereignty around the world.

How many have you been to?

Over the years, I have asked this question to many people. The usual response is I have never left America. To my surprise, I have heard many people say that they had never really left the 3 or 4 state area where they live. In fact, I was on a sales call a few years ago and I asked my client if they had ever visited anywhere outside of the U.S. and their response shocked me. The gentleman in his mid to late fifties told me that he had never left Colorado. WOW! He lived less than 2 hours from the New Mexico border, less than 2 hours from the Kansas border and about 3 hours from the Wyoming border.

When I was a young believer (at least young by way of making the decision for Christ on my own as opposed to attending church or youth group because my parents made me do it), I came across a passage in the Bible that I had probably heard many times up to that point in my life, but now spoke to my heart on a deep level. Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” I took these verses personally and ever since then, I have had a passion and a desire to do just what it says. To “GO” and make disciples.

These were some of the last words that Jesus spoke to his disciples and if you go to the book of Acts, just a few verses into the book, Acts 1:8 says this; “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

This would translate today to the town or city you live in, your state, your country, and all the countries of the earth. Unfortunately too many people cannot get past the idea of making a disciple in their own city or town that they live in. Maybe because of fear, or maybe because they just don’t know what to do or what it looks like to disciple someone.
I have often said this, “there are usually 3 types of people that you have in your life, those who you are discipling, those who you are being discipled by, and those who you are being discipled along side of you.” If you take a look at the relationships that you have in your life, they typically fit into one of those three categories.

A disciple is a student or a follower of someone. I encourage you, after reading this, to do a self assessment of those that you have in your life. Decide which category your friends and your relationships are in. When you figure out which category your relationships fit into, it will actually cause you to be more intentional about those relationships.

If someone fits into the category of a disciple, then you will be more intentional about teaching them all that you know about a specific topic. If an individual fits into the category of someone you are being discipled by, you will find that you will be more focused on what you can learn from that person. You will ask more questions and desire to spend more time with them. Either way, be intentional with your relationships and you will find that your influence in the lives of others will begin to grow.

Everyone has a different call and a different purpose in their life. Some may have a call to business and others may have a call to sports or even to full time ministry. Either way, we all have an individual mandate from God that he has only put us on this earth to fulfill. That being said, those verses in Matthew 28 are not just specific to someone that is called to full time ministry. Those verses are an instruction from Jesus to every believer. What will you do with it? Will you stay in your little corner of the country, attending your local church, going about your daily life without ever doing anything? Or will you begin to find someone to disciple and share what God has put on the inside of you? Maybe you already are doing that. I would love to hear about it. It always encourages me to hear how others are teaching and discipling those around them.

Back to the initial question. How many countries have you been to? The main reason I ask this question is because I want to encourage you, the reader, to step outside of the box of life that you currently live in and experience another culture, another world view, another way of life that you may not currently understand.

We (and many people reading this), live in one of the greatest nations to ever exist on the planet, but just because we live in one of the greatest nations to ever exist, that doesn’t mean we know all things and do all things the best way. In fact, a few years ago, I read a study that said Christianity was growing in Afghanistan and Iran faster than any other countries in the world. Over 19% and over 17% year over year respectively. This study got me thinking. How is that possible when it is illegal to even own a Bible in those countries? Where was America on that list? All the way down at around 110th, with a decline of almost 1% per year. Why is it that one of the greatest nations to ever exist, who in many ways claims to have the answers to many of the worlds problems, has the biggest churches, the biggest budgets, the biggest sound systems and the biggest ministries, and is on the decline?

Only if you had experienced something outside of what you are used to, would you have this thought. Only if you had experienced a way of life contrary to your own, would you ever question if there was another way of doing things. Don’t get me wrong, I love America and I will always fight for her, but what can we learn from outside of its borders? What can another culture teach us about family or about christianity or even what it truly means to be a disciple?

Moving forward, I will attempt to share a different view of the world we live in by sharing about different cultures, different countries and the experiences that I have had around the world. Combine that with a little bit of scripture and some teaching and photographs, and hopefully you will be encouraged to explore the world we live in and find someone to disciple.

I would love it if you shared this email with someone that you think would be blessed by the message.

Michael Lavrenz