Still a Good Idea

When I was a young girl, I was a GA.  Our church, like many other Baptist churches across the country, had a missions organization for girls called Girl's Auxiliary. GAs were part of the Woman's Missionary Union.

As a GA, I memorized Scripture.  I learned about missions in our country and around the world.  I learned to pray for missionaries. 

GAs had a list that we called Star Ideals.  These days we would probably call that a mission statement or a list of goals.  But back then we didn't use that terminology, so they were called Star Ideals.

The list looked like this:

• Abiding in Him through prayer
• Advancing in wisdom through Bible study
• Acknowledging my stewardship
• Adorning myself with good works
• Accepting the challenge of the Great Commission

A lot has changed since I was a little girl.  A lot has changed in how we "do church".  A  lot has changed in how we teach children about Jesus and about missions.  A lot has changed about how we communicate.  Terminology has changed.  Technology has changed.

But some things haven't changed.  The truths of the Bible are still true.  The world still needs Jesus.  And this list of star ideals is still embedded in my thinking.

We might not talk about star ideals much any more.  We talk more about goals and mission statements.  But no matter what terminology we use, this list still encapsulates the disciplines of the Christian life.  It sums up what living the Christian life is all about.  And following this list is still a good idea.

"Abide in me, and I in you."  (John 15:4 ESV)