A pocket-sized book sits on my bookshelf. The cover promises that it contains a "compact guide to the Christian life." But when I scan the pages, I discover to my chagrin that there is no reference in the 228 pages to a Christian's commitment to be world minded, globally aware, or outreach oriented. Sadly, it reflects the attitudes of many who say, "Well, there are so many needs right here at home that we cannot think beyond our own worlds."

In contrast to such a narrow view, Gordon Aeschlirnan describes the globalized world in which we live:

In a village a thousand miles up the Amazon, people are reading the French-owned magazine File and the U.S.-produced Better Homes and Gardens. Guatemalans are ordering chicken chow mein, American youth are wearing Russian designer jeans, the Japanese are displaying their latest cuts at top Paris fashion shows, the French are eating Big Macs, the world is doing the lambada, and Japanese Ninja Turtles have given Batman the boot.

In such an internationalized world, even a compact guide to the Christian life must include a global perspective. Our world-class commitment is to the "ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8), not just the end of the street or the extent of our Zip Code. God calls us out of our church pews and beyond our own comfort zones into other cultures.