We at Assignments International are committed to walking out our God-given assignments and want to walk alongside you,
sharing what we’ve found to be helpful in finding our specific tailor-made assignments
What is an Assignment?
I suppose this word is most commonly used or thought of as homework, though “assignment” is also a legal term involving an assignor and an assignee, regarding the transfer of rights, work, or property.
Biblically speaking, there are many words in Hebrew and Greek that provide the root word for the English translation “assignment,” but our commission at Assignments International is primarily taken from the Greek word “tasso” which means to be.
ASSIGNED
APPOINTED
ORDAINED
A brief word study shows some context for what is meant when we use the word “assignment.”
Acts 22:10 Paul says, What shall I do, Lord?’ “‘Get up,’ the Lord said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned (tasso) to do.’”
Acts 15:2 says, “This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed (tasso), along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.
Acts 13:48 says, “And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained (tasso) to eternal life believed.
Acts 28:23 (a day) They arranged (tasso) to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. He witnessed to them from morning till evening, explaining about the kingdom of God, and from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets he tried to persuade them about Jesus.
Rom 13:1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established (tasso) by God.
Acts 17:26 And He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed (pros-tasso) times and the boundaries of their habitation.
When we say that we are seeking to find and obey our “God-given assignments”, we seek out what we have been assigned, appointed, or ordained for.
This is often translated into our minds as “tasks,” things to do. In fact the closest Chinese translation for the word assignment would be 任务 “ren wu”: task, mission, role.
I have found on my journey, that assignments always have unusual twists and surprises.
“Nonetheless, in my experience, assignments always involve a number of important ingredients: a land, a cost, a God connection, a relational aspect, and a deeper understanding of who God is.”
— Carolyn Iga