You know what is interesting about being a missionary? The awe people have when they find out what you do. It’s surprising most times, especially after having been a minister in the states.
I hear there was a time when being a minister was viewed as a very respectable thing to be. You’d tell someone you’re a minister, and instantly you’d be considered some kind of trustworthy authority. Not so much anymore.
It’s funny, because it seems political office has pretty much gone the same way. Tell someone you are a senator, governor, or what have you and they’d think you were a fine person for serving the American people. These days, not so much. Not even the president can catch a break.
What happened? I’m guessing it’s because people used the offices they held at one time for indecent and immoral behavior. Politicians and ministers alike are often times associated with hypocrisy and selfishness at the cost of others. Ministers are lucky enough to have the added benefit of also being viewed as judgmental.
Good times.
But you know what comes to mind when you tell someone you’re a missionary? They immediately associate your actions with sacrifice. That you’ve forgone the comforts of your home country for a nobler life.
It’s a bit silly, really, because you probably have the same percentage of missionaries who are scam artists as you do stateside ministers who are scam artists. That is to say, some but not nearly all. However, when stateside ministers go bad, they get the benefit of television coverage.
It’s a shame, really, that a few people can taint the image of men and women who are desperately trying to serve people. But it’s not a new thing.
In the early church, there were people who went around doing things in the name of Jesus that were actually for their own selfish benefit. At one time Paul was written a letter about some of these people, and his response was a bit surprising.
[They] “do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me. But that doesn’t matter. Whether their motives are false or genuine, the message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice.” (source)
I think Paul was confident that the true message of the gospel is more powerful than even those who would use it selfishly. In the end, it still conquers and changes men’s hearts.
You know, my natural reaction is to hate those who co-opt my faith for something sinister. But over the last couple years God has been teaching me a lot about his love for people. And even though he finds their corruption of the faith vile, his love for them remains the same. I’ve come to think that maybe my love for them should also be the same, and maybe I should also trust that the message of the gospel is more powerful than those people too.
And maybe, if we all keep this in mind, after a time people will begin to associate love and hope with our faith again, along with the messengers of our faith.
To be great is to be misunderstood.