~My Vision for Finland...And the World

My Vision for Finland... And the World

Three things that are lacking our present world: hope, peace, and love. You hear talk of our world’s current state and someone says, “There’s no hope for it.” People talk about their personal lives and you can tell that there is no peace. Many people have not yet experienced the true love which is given freely by Jesus Christ.


How do I plan to show these things to the world? By my example. If I have peace in my life, the people around me should be able to see it. If I have experienced God’s true love and His hope, it should be visible. Luke 11:33: "No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.” Matthew 5:15: “Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.” We, as children of God, should show plainly the hope, peace, and the love we experience because we carry His Name. When you place hope, peace, and love together, what is the result? True happiness which cannot be bought nor traded. The only way one can receive this happiness is by God alone. Therefore, if we have received God into our lives by the evidence of speaking with other tongues, and have wholly surrendered ourselves to God, then we should make this happiness visible to the whole world.

In Finland, there is no hope, peace, or love. Alcoholism is rampant. They believe that alcohol can relieve them of their troubles. But, all it does is fog their mind and give them a headache in the morning. Here are some statistics:

     • Alcohol claimed about 2,200 lives in Finland last year, up by about 9% from the year before.

     • Alcohol is the biggest killer of working-age Finns, followed by ischaemic heart disease, accidents and suicides.

They have no inner peace. The Lutheran church loses thousands of Finnish members every year. They can place no hope in these dead traditions which only take up their time with no spiritual change. They are amoral; they do not know what morals are. There is no Apostolic presence there at this time, so they have not felt God’s true love and peace. Education is their God. There is no peace in education, for your education cannot love you, and the only hope you can have in it is the possibility of getting a good job. What kind of hope is that? No hope at all! God’s hope is the peace we have by experiencing His love for us.

My vision for Finland is that my family, and the AIMers who come to help us, would exhibit God’s hope, peace, and love to the Finns. And, I pray that the children of God would strive to do the same no matter where they are. “Romans 8:38-39: For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Look at your hands for a moment. Those are the only hands that God has to reach your world. He wants this world saved, but He commissioned us to win them. Mark 16:15: And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.” John 3:16-17: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” When a person finds hope in God, they find peace and love there as well. If God came and died for you, then did He not die for the drug addict or the alcoholic? What about the prostitute, or the murderer? Did he die for them, too? Of course he did! He loves them just as much as He loves us. He hates the sin, but loves the sinner. Did he not give salvation to the criminal while He hung on the cross? Yes! Then, will he save the nation of Finland? Yes! But only if we become an example of love, hope, and peace – just like Jesus Christ. For if we are His hands and feet, we should be His mirror as well.

Candace Alphin
Missionary to Finland
May 4, 2010
(All references in ESV)

Note!  Candace is the fifteen year old daughter of Mark and Glenda Alphin, missionaries to Finland.