The Gospel's Butterfly Effect

“Does the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?”

Edward Lorenz, a mild-mannered meteorology professor from MIT posed that question during the 139th meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science-nearly fifty years ago. Lorenz’s question became known as the “Butterfly Effect” and has been embraced by popular culture (I first learned about it from Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park). This idea also became the basis for a branch of mathematics known as chaos theory.

While the butterfly effect has been debated (and no, no one has been able to blame a hurricane on a hummingbird), minor events can often lead to larger outcomes. It’s like the poem or proverb that has been passed along for centuries:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

At Journey, we are in the middle of our missions conference, a time we set aside to focus on missions and how God uses our church to help fulfill His mandate to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). As we talk about these things, there is an obvious “butterfly effect” that takes place. The Apostle Paul writes about it in his letter to the Roman church:

For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how  can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they  believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? (Romans 10:13-15)

Paul writes about a chain of events that has to take place in order for people to put their faith in Christ-whether that’s in our own neighborhood or the other side of the world. It looks like this:

  • People have to believe in Jesus to experience His saving power.

  • They have to hear about Him in order to believe in Him.

  • Someone has to tell them in order for them to hear.

  • Someone has to go and tell.

  • The one who goes and tells has to be sent.

You can call it the butterfly effect of missions if you want, but it is clear that there are crucial steps in people hearing the Gospel message of Christ—and we have a part to play in that process.

When it comes to missions—taking the whole message of Christ to the whole world—our role is three-fold. We can pray, we can give, and we can go. When we pray for our missionaries and for nations and people groups around the world, our prayers can go where we never will. When you and I are praying for South Africa, Kosovo, Thailand, Nicaragua, Cambodia, Liberia, Mexico, and other nations where we have mission partners, those prayers have an effect, even if we never set foot in those countries. When we give to missions, we enable missionaries and mission works to go into communities all over the planet and tell people about the God who loves them. Your missions giving makes that possible. Together we are funding the mission to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission. And sometimes we have the privilege of going and serving, either right in our own community with the Des Moines Dream Center or for a short-term mission trip in a foreign country and culture. Our prayers, our giving, and our going matter!

If we take Paul’s words in Romans 10 and “rewind” them, we get a clear picture of the importance of our missions giving and support. It goes something like this: If we don’t give, missionaries can’t be sent, and mission projects don’t happen. If the missionaries don’t go, they can’t tell anyone about the Gospel. If they don’t tell anyone about the Gospel, people will be born, live, and die without ever hearing about Jesus. If they don’t hear, they can’t believe in Christ. If they don’t believe, they can’t call on Jesus for salvation.

This version of the butterfly effect has eternal ramifications.

What we give to missions matters. Whether it is a $20 monthly commitment or $1,000 goal on your mission faith promise card, it matters. Your mission giving is the fuel that allows missionaries to be out in the field serving. It’s what allows a ministry like the Dream Center to function and serve our city. It’s what helps fund the starting of new churches in Kosovo. It is what feeds a child through Blessman Ministries in South Africa. One hundred percent of what is given to missions through Journey Church goes directly to our mission partners.

When you give to missions, people are sent to every corner of our planet to serve people and share the Gospel. When they share, people in those countries hear. When they hear, many of them believe. When they believe, their lives are transformed eternally. So, thank you for your faith-filled and faithful giving to missions. It might feel like a butterfly wing flap, but it is having hurricane-like impact all over the world.

NOTE: If you would like to receive a missions faith promise card from Journey Church, please request one from info@journeydsm.org.