Missionary Life

As a kid I used to define “missionary” as someone who went to another country in order to share the Gospel. Then in my late twenties I moved to Mexico. Many people, on both sides of the border, called me a missionary; yet I became more and more uncomfortable with the title. It seemed like a high calling that I didn’t fit into—not because I looked down upon myself, but because I didn’t fit into the U.S. 21st century definition of a missionary. I had not been to a Bible school or seminary, nor had I gone through any missionary training program. I was not officially sent by my church, denomination, or missions agency. I did not raise support.

With a real conviction that all Christians have the responsibility to share Christ with others, I began to define “missionary” as any Christian who took Christianity seriously. Or better put, every Christian is a missionary, ideally. Uhh, not so fast […]

There are only a couple of blogs I follow on a daily basis. Recently I read that one of “my” bloggers is heading back to the States for good—calling it quits on the field.

My intention is not to come off as cynical, but his farewell post, the comments that followed, and the follow-up posts, all sounded kind of like every other goodbye blog-roll I’ve read. Feelings of guilt, reflection, a summation of what has been learned on the field, and vague plans for the future in the U.S. of A. I’m not trying to take a jab at the blogger; I mean, what’s he supposed to say? Of course there is going to be slight (or great) guilt, lots of reflection, many things learned, and ideas for the upcoming months or year. C’mon! I just read it with sadness—that’s all. I’ve enjoyed reading his blog. It’s been real, honest, exciting, and even the mundane grind. I can relate to it. And the soon to be ex-missionary blogger is a guy I’d like to meet. […]

The February 2008 issue of Motor Trend magazine put up a comparison between four family sedans. In the running were the Chevrolet Malibu LTZ, the Honda Accord EX-L V-6, the Nissan Altima 3.5 SE, and finally the Toyota Camry SE V-6. Upon seeing the lineup, I almost passed over reading the article. Why would I care about middle-class, family four-doors? I received my answer in the fourth paragraph.

For Christmas this year the orphanage I work at received more than 15 presents per child. Some may say the Lord has really blessed us, but I’m trying to figure out a way to receive fewer gifts next December.

All these Christmas donations seem like a new phenomenon in Tijuana. Americans have always tried to dump their used toys and clothing on the people of Mexico. But now, in the weeks leading up to Christmas the emails and phone calls pour in from folks in the U.S. wanting to give new presents to the orphans in this city. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a welcome change. But when is it too much? The days before the 25th at our orphanage are like a non-stop party with groups of Americans coming in by the van load to lavish the children with gifts.

Damaris stood up during the time of thanksgiving that we have each Sunday service. With a huge smile, she echoed what two other sisters had just exclaimed. “Our evangelistic outreach yesterday was a tremendous success, and we did it all without the help of Americans. There was not one single American present!”

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference…” –Reinhold Niebuhr

Alcoholics Anonymous uses this prayer in their meetings. Missionaries must use this prayer in life. For any missionary abroad, there are annoyances beyond belief that must be confronted, dealt with, or ignored.

Late the other night I crossed into the U.S. via the San Ysidro Border just south of San Diego. Supposedly it’s the busiest border crossing in the world. Most of those crossing supply Southern California with cheap, productive labor. The wait can easily be an hour or two—and at real bad times, three to four. I’m fortunate to have a fast pass, which propelled me through in just fifteen minutes—or so I thought. Woops, random inspection. So I was sent to “Secondary” for a thorough search […]

A couple of missionary blogs I’ve been following over the last year are coming to an end—or at least seem to be. Here’s the scoop:

Missionary Family #1: Appears to have been very well funded. On the mission field, they write about great trips and getaways with frequency. Recently they have permanently returned home for a variety of personal and spiritual reasons. They specifically asked their supporters to continue giving to the very end, as full support would be needed. They took a trip for several weeks on the way home that most Americans will never do or be able to afford. Now in the U.S. for just a month, they’ve purchased a home, picked up full-time, professional employment, and have just received their container of goods from their home overseas—must have been nice stuff to justify the shipping.

Missionary Family #2: Started the fund raising process five years ago. To date they are only at 60 percent. They’ve used up most of their savings and have cut back on expenditures. Due to the frustrations of a half-decade of emotionally trying support raising and the reality of still needing such a large percentage, these missionaries are considering returning to secular vocations. From everything written in their blog, they appear extremely genuine in their desire to continue serving in ministry full-time; yet the money has not come in.

Many third world ministries (including the one I work for) have the tag line: “Helping the poorest of the poor.” After all, if you’re going to send money—your own money—it’s got to have the greatest effect, right? Americans want a return on their investment. We want results. Before and after pictures, receipts, pie graphs, and general satisfaction that our money changed someone dramatically. For if we are going to give up a cup of coffee a day, it darn well has to make the world a better place! […]

The Persecuted Church Weblog has two excellent posts up for anyone involved in international missions.

“No, I do not believe that persecution is the greatest threat to the continuing spread of the gospel. I am much more concerned about something that, at first glance, seems benign and even helpful but which I contend is far more insidious. I am referring to the dependency creating practices that ministries are increasingly promoting in the name of “partnership.””

In Why Am I Concerned About Dependency? and the follow-up But Is It Biblical? (Dependency Part 2) author Glenn Penner walks us through some of the issues that come up when a church is dependent on western aid and offers suggestions for what he sees as a more biblical approach to helping churches without financial resources. As the name implies, his blog is focused on Christians in closed countries but the points in these posts apply anytime there is “dependency on western resources to spread the gospel.”

Found via Michelle in the Ukraine.