Sometimes when you go on missions, there’s a certain expectation of you.
That you’re the perfect Christian.
You better be posting pictures of the underfed Children you’re serving. You should tell stories of all the lives you changed. You’re now more in tune with the Holy Spirit and your direction in life. You’ll come back and only use the necessities of life. You should be able to quote Bible verses (a lot of them). You should be able to count (and it better be a big number) the number of people who have accepted Jesus in front of you. You never act out of anger. You never doubt your own faith. You are always happy and wanting to serve others more than yourself.
While some of those might ring true for your mission, sometimes they don’t. And that’s okay. I’m here to tell you that I’m not the perfect Christian.
Sometimes when we do listening prayer, I don’t hear anything and I think that God isn’t speaking to me. Sometimes “ministry” for the day is mopping a floor that a goat poops on five minutes later. Sometimes I cry while washing windows because I’m so frustrated I can’t speak their language and communicate effectively. Sometimes the kids are being extra annoying and I don’t want to play with them. Sometimes I walk to the store and buy oreos and a soda because I just can’t handle rice and beans anymore. Sometimes I’m not in the Word all day because I just choose not to. Sometimes I think I’m not making a difference at all in the world. Sometimes all I want to do is to use a washing machine.
But ALWAYS God is good. ALWAYS God is with me. ALWAYS is He teaching me to serve. ALWAYS does He triumph over language barriers. ALWAYS does He love His children. ALWAYS does He give me what I need. ALWAYS is He faithful to me. ALWAYS is He furthering His Kingdom. ALWAYS does He continue to humble me before Him.
Being a missionary doesn’t mean you’re a perfect Christian or live a picture perfect life. Being a missionary looks a lot like being an ordinary person living in an unfamiliar land. Being a missionary doesn’t require extensive training or experience. Being a missionary is simply loving God and taking a step of faith, trusting He will bring you through.
I’m a missionary. I’m not the perfect Christian. And that’s okay, because I’m a Christian with a perfect God.
