Ah, the glamour of missions! I recently had a pastor confide in me:
"Tim, I used to think all pastors were going to heaven - then I started working with them. But, somehow, I still think all missionaries are going to heaven."
I think he was trying to encourage me. Although I don't think he was being literal (I hope not), he was communicating that somewhat misconceived notion that missionaries are superstars. I know in the past I certainly have had the same notion. I used to think about how adventurous, sacrificial, and spiritual their lives must be. Then, like the pastor, I got to know some! Then, I became one.
Certainly there is a bit of adventure and sacrifice associated with being a missionary. But it is not the spiritual glamour life that many people believe. Missionaries are just ordinary people doing ordinary things.
Take for instance the types of things that I have done the past week. I have made several dozen phone calls to churches, pastors, and mission committees. Many times I just had to leave messages or I got a busy signal. That is not glamorous.
Or take for example the 20 letters I sent to other physicians asking them to consider becoming supporters. Not glamorous! Or the 23 thank you notes and acknowledgements. Again, not glamorous. I can't even remember the number of emails I answered - important, but not glamorous.
The point of this "rant" is not to say that I don't think these things are not important. They are just "ordinary" tasks - things that you do on a daily basis (well, except to call people up asking them for money!). They are the mundane, the routine, the normal things that need to be done.
The more important thing to remember is that you and I do these ordinary things for an EXTRAORDINARY GOD! We must remember that we are called to do our daily tasks and duties "as unto the Lord!" Our witness to the world is in how we direct our activities to the glory of God, not to the praises of man.
So, the next time you start to think of missionaries (and pastors for that matter) as glamorous, just remember that they do ordinary things for an extraordinary GOD!
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