Monday, June 12, 2006
What It Means to be a Missionary
Learning From My Friends
I had some experiences this weekend that upon reflection are good illustrations of what it means to be a missionary.
OK, I fell into temptation. I watched several of the Football (soccer) World Cup games. It was notable that the first game I watched with a bunch of non-Christian friends and acquaintances. There were some there who loved to show me how well they know the English language by cursing loudly in English. Others, were conversational, and I learned a bit about the culture of sports and its importance here (by the way, there is no other news right now, only the World Cup). The impression and illustration was the challenge of maintaining a good testimony and living and speaking truth, while having "secular friends." I put that in quotation marks because it is so strange talking about friends and people that way. The point is this: the missionary is that person who goes out of the circle of Christian contacts, and actively lives for Christ in a secular community. A lot of times I feel really strange, because I have a different set of presuppositions, but that is what being a missionary is al about.
The second observation happened with some friends in the park. We were all standing in a circle kicking a soccer ball around and each showing what he could do (I showed very little). Some of the guys were so confident that they were joking in good fun about how good they were, and then one guy did a series of kicks and tricks that was incredible with the end in kissing the ball mid air and basically juggling with his feet. Just a few minutes later, we went to play basketball. I played lightly, but I had to show off a little, since I felt a little more at home. Those guys most confident with the soccer ball were shaking with nerves trying to find the ball with their hands. The observation is this: the missionary leaves his home and comfort, and goes to strange situations. They left their home to "minister" in a foreign context. This is what the missionary does. In this sense, the missionary is a student much more than a teacher.
The third observation was just yesterday. I was with a group of people mixed in nationality and origin. We were again involved with the World Cup, and Portugal was playing. When they played the national anthem, I observed the pastor of the church (Brazilian) singing with pride the Portuguese anthem. What an example of a missionary heart. I do not know what will happen if Brazil plays Portugal in the later rounds, but I noted that he was able integrate in his ministry such that his new home is as much his home as his old one ever was. This is the task of the missionary. He leaves behind some things to take up new ones. He takes on a new identity that is more interested in who he is in Christ and making that identity the focus of his ministry.
Not all of these things have come true fully in my life, but these are some of my goals. My time in Mozambique is coming very soon, and I want it to be marked by these things. As I move toward a new phase in ministry, I trust that God will "let this mind be in me.
Please pray for my upcoming summer plans, and in particular my travels very soon back to the States.
Please pray for my support to reach the necessary level.
Please pray for the field of Mozambique, as they move forward in the ministry that is just being established.
Praise for the good friends that God has allowed me to have here.
Praise God for a good return on the final exam.
I had some experiences this weekend that upon reflection are good illustrations of what it means to be a missionary.
OK, I fell into temptation. I watched several of the Football (soccer) World Cup games. It was notable that the first game I watched with a bunch of non-Christian friends and acquaintances. There were some there who loved to show me how well they know the English language by cursing loudly in English. Others, were conversational, and I learned a bit about the culture of sports and its importance here (by the way, there is no other news right now, only the World Cup). The impression and illustration was the challenge of maintaining a good testimony and living and speaking truth, while having "secular friends." I put that in quotation marks because it is so strange talking about friends and people that way. The point is this: the missionary is that person who goes out of the circle of Christian contacts, and actively lives for Christ in a secular community. A lot of times I feel really strange, because I have a different set of presuppositions, but that is what being a missionary is al about.
The second observation happened with some friends in the park. We were all standing in a circle kicking a soccer ball around and each showing what he could do (I showed very little). Some of the guys were so confident that they were joking in good fun about how good they were, and then one guy did a series of kicks and tricks that was incredible with the end in kissing the ball mid air and basically juggling with his feet. Just a few minutes later, we went to play basketball. I played lightly, but I had to show off a little, since I felt a little more at home. Those guys most confident with the soccer ball were shaking with nerves trying to find the ball with their hands. The observation is this: the missionary leaves his home and comfort, and goes to strange situations. They left their home to "minister" in a foreign context. This is what the missionary does. In this sense, the missionary is a student much more than a teacher.
The third observation was just yesterday. I was with a group of people mixed in nationality and origin. We were again involved with the World Cup, and Portugal was playing. When they played the national anthem, I observed the pastor of the church (Brazilian) singing with pride the Portuguese anthem. What an example of a missionary heart. I do not know what will happen if Brazil plays Portugal in the later rounds, but I noted that he was able integrate in his ministry such that his new home is as much his home as his old one ever was. This is the task of the missionary. He leaves behind some things to take up new ones. He takes on a new identity that is more interested in who he is in Christ and making that identity the focus of his ministry.
Not all of these things have come true fully in my life, but these are some of my goals. My time in Mozambique is coming very soon, and I want it to be marked by these things. As I move toward a new phase in ministry, I trust that God will "let this mind be in me.
Please pray for my upcoming summer plans, and in particular my travels very soon back to the States.
Please pray for my support to reach the necessary level.
Please pray for the field of Mozambique, as they move forward in the ministry that is just being established.
Praise for the good friends that God has allowed me to have here.
Praise God for a good return on the final exam.
