http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matt%2028:18-20&version=NIV1984
I still remember the first time I ever heard or saw a missionary. It was in the mid-60's at our little Free Methodist Church in Niagara Falls, New York. The pastor’s son had been a missionary to Africa. One Sunday there was a table inside the sanctuary that had all kinds of artifacts from Africa. I think there was a piece of ivory tusk. About the size of a key fob. A couple of objects were made out of cast iron. There was a map. And some photographs. The display was very interesting. Exotic. To a young teenager they represented adventure. Excitement. Enchantment.Funny, after all these years, this is the way that many people still think about missionaries. They have it made. They get to live in a foreign land. Eat foreign food. Speak a foreign language. Get to see all kinds of cool and strange sites. Plus, they are making an impact for God! Who could ask for anything more? Certainly missionary life must rank right up there as the most exciting thing a person could ever do with their life, right? Well, yes and no.
Yes, being a missionary and taking the Gospel to people who may have never heard the name of Jesus is one of the greatest privileges this side of Heaven. No, being a missionary is not all fun-and-games. The reality is that being a missionary is lot like going to war. War seems very romantic until people start shooting at you. And people die. Being a missionary also seems very romantic. Until you find out just how difficult it can be.
Yesterday at church I shared a newsletter from one of our missionaries. Or ‘international workers’ as they are now known. The letter details what it was like to return back to the field after a 6 month stretch at home. Here’s what she encountered on her first day back:
• The land under the front gate to her apartment had settled, meaning that she couldn’t get her vehicle in or out of the apartment complex. The gate is for protection from thieves.
• The land under the awning that acted as her car port had also settled, pulling the awning almost completely away from the building it had been attached to. She couldn’t park her car under it because if the awning fell it would damage her car.
• Her telephone wasn’t working.
• The cable for her internet service had been down for 3 months.
• Millions of tiny ants had taken up residence in the house. No food can be left out anywhere for more than 5 minutes before it attracts the ants.
• She decided to wash some bedding (good idea) but the water was muddy.
• On her 3rd filling of the washer (the water was now clean) she threw in her sheets. In a matter of moments she saw something else inside the tub. Cockroaches! They had made the tub their home. She drained the washing machine and started all over.
• She went to open the safe where she had put her driver’s license and extra local currency. She wanted to put her passport and other valuables in it. The safe wouldn’t open.
• Several members of her ministry team are leaving the country shortly. Permanently. A program that she was involved with last year that had 100 students is now down to a handful.
Can you say, discouraged? Depressing? Overwhelming? This is missionary life. Oh, not every day. But on more days than we could ever imagine. The fact is that missionaries serve in various countries around the world at a cost. Far away from family and friends. In a culture that is foreign to them. Rarely getting to speak their own language. At the risk of thieves. And bodily harm. Driving down poorly-maintained highways and bridges. Where few people observe the traffic laws. Trying to reach people who are suspicious of them. Trying to work with national church leaders who may be difficult to work with. Or who are more interested in status than they are the lost. All of these elements can combine at times to discourage even the most optimistic of missionaries.
This is why they need our support. Our prayers. Our money. Our contact. E-mails. Letters. Cards. (Where such correspondence is not going to jeopardize their ministry.) A package or gift from time to time. These kinds of things help a missionary to know that they are not alone. That others back home are thinking of them. And haven't forgotten them.
So support your missionaries. Pray. Give. Keep in contact where you can. Make them aware of your presence. They desperately need it. And it is our duty. After all, it is our place they are taking!
Lord, I thank you for the thousands of missionaries all around the world who are serving You. Many in difficult places. Where life is not comfortable. Or easy. Where Satanic opposition is strong. Protect them, Lord. Encourage them. Strengthen them. Help that the message they bear will be heard. That many lives will be changed. Help me to do my part in supporting them. In Jesus' name, Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment