4-5 years back, after giving my life to Christ, my criteria for a future spouse shifted slightly, one of those being the addition of the condition that she must be a Christian. But it was only until maybe 2-3 years back that I really got convicted. Prior to that I struggled to deal with nice non-believing Christian friends. Then I realize that being a Christian alone is not enough, the mormons and jehovah witness call themselves that too. She must know God, but even that is insufficient. She must love God, love Him with self-abandonment.
That expectation grew with my personal growth, and gradually I realize that a normal Christian girl would not be able to live with (withstanding being a totally different thing, but if a married couple sustains the relationship by withstanding each other, it's a little sad) my kind of lifestyle/conviction about God's calling in my life. So at one point, quite recently, I became certain that my wife would be missions-minded, probably called to Indonesia, Thailand, Africa etc. Many many places~
So what does a mission-minded person look like, in accordance to my definition? The term "missionary" has a significant personal relevance for me because of my salvation story, so I do have some expectations for the so-called missions-minded people. In fact, I have met many who made that lofty self-proclamation, but I personally find extreme difficulties to even try to agree. I couldn't.
(This post would cover my personal ideal for how a missionary and his ministry would look like. It may not be God's standard for His choice of workers, but it's my preference in selecting my favored co-laborers. I'm using my personal free will to express my personal preference and this is a fun post, so don't be offended if you find any of the points below personally relevant. Have fun reading =))
1. God's missionaries are characterized by a broken heart for the lost.
God's purpose for His missionaries is for us to become channels specific for pouring out His love unto His children, so the top quality must be love. This is an unsurprising inclusion, but the understanding of how love look like may differ, so I will elaborate and give my version of love-driven ministries. Some people even question if love alone is enough because of the abuse of love- you know like those self-gratification kind of love, the indulging kind of love, the warped kind of love- but despite that, I'm inclined to believe that love alone is indeed enough.
My love-driven ministries place the focus on relationship-building. I understand that there are people who say that doing missions without preaching the gospel is not missions at all (it's at best community service), but Francesco also famously said this, "Preach the Gospel, and if necessary use words." I'm all for preaching the good news, but if preaching the good news become an end to itself, I'm usually very disappointed. I have this whole thing about differentiating clearly between means and purposes: (applied) we preach the Gospel because we are inspired by God's love and thus we love; we don't love in order to preach the Gospel. Loving is the purpose and the motivation, preaching the Gospel is an expression of that. Both will look alike physically, and it's really the heart that makes all the difference. On a few occasions, I was asked one of the bizarre question about mission team not preaching the Gospel- they only go there to help the people and leave. Can I suggest that the Gospel has already been preached in the genuineness of that love, of the good things that have been done, and of the relationships that have been built.
God's missionaries look at the field and the first thing they have in mind is to integrate him/herself into the group of locals. We look at the people and see treasures and souls whom our hearts extend out to, and we are inspired by unexplained love for strangers, people whom we have not met, but we just love them. (Oh, and by the way, I especially love foreigners!) Others look at the fields and see numbers (potential converts), opportunities (sick to be healed). I mean all these are great platforms through which God can demonstrate His prowess, but I don't like the idea of guinea-pig-ing fellow humans, not saying everyone is like that though.
If we come out from the place being known for the guy who brings miracles, the guy who speaks good wisdom, or the guy who diligently helped out, all these are good; but I would be most glad if I come away being known as the guy who loved and bothered to make friends with us. (Matthew 7:22-23)
For me, the focus of missions is the people, the friendships, the relationships; not the task, nor the programs to meet.
I never expect my first point to be that long, but this is something I feel very strongly about. I promise the remaining pointers to be much shorter.
2. God's missionaries are devoted to His works on the fields.
I remember my first mission trip- I was not having a good time because I was feeling anguish and angry how that mission trip was turning out. Many friends were sticking around in small groups, and for every 15 minutes out in the sun, 30 minutes would be spent in the office to enjoy the air-con or what not. The young and hot-headed boy that I was back then, I could not understand why these people even came for a mission trip. God's missionaries are dedicated to what they have been called to do, be it to provide help or to make friends. We readily step out of our comfort zone into the fields, while others came physically but left every other aspect back at home. Ever had experiences with missionaries complaining about bad lodging conditions? How about those who quickly shut away in the room on their phones/wifi the moment we arrive back at the hotel? And how about those who make demands as if because I am here to help, you should accede to all my requests as much as possible? I've met them all, and within my personal bubble-frame-of-mind, I don't consider these true missionaries. They are at best missionaries on paper, and the biggest takeaway is probably something like a credential to have a cool story to boast about when I'm back home. You know, the wow, you went for a mission trip?
"Wherever you are, be all there!" Jim Elliot~
3. God's missionaries are bold and move in exorbitant faith.
If anything, the mission field is one of the most dynamic working environment around. The word is actually "unpredictable". Cross-cultural differences and barriers usually give us unexpected situations such as a surprisingly great number of turnout, or a lack of one material or the other. Trust me, even if they had promised before, with all good intentions, many of them really are just too nice to turn down any requests put up by us. They really tried to help us gather our shopping list items.
God's missionaries have to be flexible enough to not be flustered, and readily have a few things up their sleeves to hold the fort. We are not particular about needing to sit down on chairs, or that the people should queue up etc. Instead, we are pretty much the kind who 天当被地当铺, 席地而坐 (treat the sky as our blanket and the ground our bed, find our seat on any space on the ground).
4. God's missionaries are visionaries
This is linked to point 3. We have a goal and a vision of how that goal looks like, and we actively work toward bringing that into reality, and it begins with investing in the lives of the locals. Proverbs 29:18 "where there is no vision, people perish." It is easy to feel good about coming to a mission trip, after all psychology research has shown that people feel good when they engage in altruistic activities, but it is those who caught onto something that God has impressed upon their heart, it is those who caught onto the God-given vision of the place, these are the people who will stay on for a long time. It is okay to have fun and enjoy mission trips, but mission trips cannot only be about having fun. We participate in the joy of the locals, but we ought to share in their suffering as well. It just doesn't make sense to say that I am here to live amongst you, but then demand hot waters for showers when water is one of the most precious resources for the locals.
5. God's missionaries actively seek to establish healthy transference.
While previously I mentioned about commitment, but we need to be clear that commitment is different from hogging. While it seems like we are there to help, the recipients of our help give us something in return- some sort of reliance, and I tell you, it feels good to be relied upon. In fact, it feels empowering. The missions model of Paul saw him actively raising leaders in the local churches such that they become self-sustaining. It's for both practical reasons and spiritual reasons. Locals understand the locals better, and once setting off a healthy cycle of leadership renewal, the long-term growth of the ministry would be secured. It also shifts away the attention from being directed to us to being directed at God. Lest we are going to migrate to our missions field for good, ministry transference is the way to go.
6. God's missionaries are survivors.
We are one of the most independent people around, emotionally, physically, health etc. It doesn't mean we are stronger than other people, but we just know how to take care of ourselves. We know that if we want to help other people, we can't afford to become a burden to other people by falling sick. So when it rains, we don't need other people to tell us to use an umbrella; when we are in a dangerous place, we don't need people to remind us to take care; when we feel hungry, we will find our own food; if we want to make friends, we take the initiatives; if we have an issue, we talk it out. All of which take into considerations language barriers and what not- somehow, we will just find our ways around, sign languages or what. Often, we find ourselves making friends with the driver, drink stall owner, the receptionist and whoever you come into contact with the most often.
It starts at home: identify areas in your life where you can begin training. One easy gauge is this: attempt to live in such a way whereby if the person whom we rely on the most disappears, we'd still be able to get by without much problems, so that includes doing housework, waking up in the morning, washing clothes, paying fees, topping up EZ-link cards, preparing meals. The list goes on.
7. God's missionaries are clear of their roles on the fields.
This doesn't mean we are smarter, or that we are more competent. It only means that we spend a much greater deal of time thinking about how we can contribute, and if we can't think of any, we bother to ask and find out and volunteer. God's missionaries should come into a place of maturity over time to negate the need to be taken care of.
8. God's missionaries are serious about missions.
We make a great deal of preparations for the things we do, simply because we care and they are important enough for us to spend our time on. Those hours people spend on their school works, I spend them thinking about missions stuff such as my personal walk with God, how I can bless people and what not. Weeks before the trip, we began loading our heads with unfamiliar words that we recognize are going to be helpful (These are some of the Thai words I learnt before a mission trip 4 years back: hong nam yuu thii nai, may kao caay, Prajao raak khun). Basically, we prioritize everything about missions and guard those time well enough: such as learning magic tricks, learning guitar etc.
9. God's missionaries have a good sense of authority and submission
For first time mission goers, we might have the urge/desire to want to experience as much of the missions' field as possible, and we might have a certain preference as to where we should be utilized, but if there's a leader in our midst, submit. This is not blind submission or spiritual submission which are invisible to the eyes, but this submission has practical values, especially in coordinated efforts. Failure to do so spoils the team dynamics, and could potentially make the whole effort not reach its full potential. If God had promised something before hand and it seems to go in contradiction to the assignment, do you think God would not be able to bring it to pass despite that? Even if I really do think that way, the more appropriate and mature method is definitely to inform the leader! I recently heard a sermon (I think it's by Kris Vallotton) which says something about if we open a door ourselves, we are responsible for keeping it open, but if God opens a door for you He will be responsible for keeping it open. Why make things difficult for ourselves, and for everyone else?
10. God's missionaries are humble.
I love Heidi Baker and her ministry! Whatever other people say, she's one of the most humble person I've met. Her main message is something like getting lower. Humility is not there to prevent us from stealing God's glory from Him, humility is to protect us. In a place like the mission fields where we are kinda elevated to a position of respect and every locals kind of look up to you, it's important to remain humble in order to stay connected to God. It is important to recognize and constantly remind ourselves how privileged it is to be able to participate in His glorious works, and even if miracles happen through us, deep down would be an overwhelming sense of awe, almost as intense as the onlookers around, to say that it is my God!
11. God's missionaries have a huge desire to make a difference.
I am someone who would say something like "what can I do now". I believe God's missionaries are driven also by a passion to want to make a difference. We do not look at something impossible and say it's not now. Our preparation period is not wait, but our waiting process is active. We actively identify opportunities to do something, big or small, and we recognize the potential and the implications of what we've been doing so far. We are storing up treasures in the heaven!!
Finally, here's one of my favorite quotes from Mother Teresa, "Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time and always start with the person nearest you." What is a daunting task? Making a difference starts with impacting a person.
Once again, the above is my personal convictions about missionaries, and I must confess that there are a lot of self-reference because I really do think that I am a missionary through-and-through. I don't think I fit all of them, but I do think point number 1 is a must! The heart inspires the remaining 10 factors, so the heart MUST be right!
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