Posted by C. Holland on Dec 29, 2008
A Christian friend recently asked what it’s like to live day-to-day on a fundraised missionary budget. Once I assured her that we haven’t gone without the necessities and God has richly provided for us throughout our entire time here, I gave her the following analogy:
It’s like taking a job where the boss tells you that you cannot know how much you will be paid each month. It can swing wildly without warning, by thousands sometimes, and it’s not dependent on how hard you work. Essentially, you open the envelope every month, draw in a deep breath, and wonder what you’ll get. Meanwhile, the exchange rate guarantees that the cost of usually fixed expenses (like rent) will go up and down, too; another thing you cannot know ahead or control. While budgeting is a nice concept, it’s not always practical.
We’ve lived this way the entire time we’ve been in the mission field, and I’d be lying to say it’s easy. It’s not. Even when we have a good month, it makes it hard to consider purchasing anything extra. That voice in your head starts whispering, “what if you need this surplus money next month?” Meanwhile, it seems like all economic chaos has broken loose throughout the globe. Stories pour in about people losing jobs and houses, while churches are losing substantial income. It can all be incredibly gloomy, especially when we’re so very dependent on the generosity of others and our visa here does not allow us to legally take a job.
So, coming into the holiday season we mentally prepared ourselves that times might get tighter for us, people might reel back their giving, and we certainly wouldn’t expect anyone to send us anything extra for Christmas. Not a problem as we have what we need to eat, etc.
But we were wrong.
Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Dec 19, 2008
“Being faithful to Jesus Christ is the most difficult thing we try to do today. We will be faithful to our work, to serving others, or to anything else; just don’t ask us to be faithful to Jesus Christ. Many Christians become very impatient when we talk about faithfulness to Jesus. Our Lord is dethroned more deliberately by Christian workers than by the world. We treat God as if He were a machine designed only to bless us, and we think of Jesus as just another one of the workers.”
—Oswald Chambers, “My Utmost For His Highest,” December 18
Posted by C. Holland on Dec 05, 2008
“God’s leading me in a new direction,” they’ll tell the congregation, but privately their admission to me will be, “I just couldn’t cope,” or “my family was so frustrated,” or even “the ministry wasn’t what I thought it was supposed to be.”
As a longtime Christian, I’ve been witness to many public explanations of why a leader or minister is either moving on to another (or moving out of) ministry. To be honest, they often smack of secular corporate memos that attempt to explain why a coworker is leaving: “Joan is exploring new career options, and we wish her all the best in her future endeavours.” Meanwhile, all the lackeys know that Joan was fired for ineptitude.
It’s become apparent that a good majority of the missionaries that I’ve watched leave the field easily fall into the categories of “this wasn’t what I thought it was” or “I didn’t fit in”. Fair enough. Missions ministry is not for everyone. And, hey, at least you tried, stepped out in faith, and probably learned a lot about yourself in the process. Leaving is not always a bad thing. Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Nov 27, 2008
Today is Thanksgiving in the States, yet I’m not celebrating it here in the mission field. It’s the second round of holidays for me outside of my birth country, so my continued reluctance to participate in uniquely American holidays and their traditions gives me insight into how I perceive these practises.
It’s not that I’m actively refusing to acknowledge things like Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July, or even Cinco de Mayo (hilarious that it’s celebrated in the States, but in my original neck of the woods it is a must). Of the secular holidays, Thanksgiving is actually my favorite because of the emphasis on family interaction—and the lack of emphasis on materialism, conspicuous consumption or family drama that those things seem to attract.
And it’s not that I’m ungrateful. As a missionary I have loads to be thankful for today, as do many others around me. Read More…
Posted by C. Holland on Nov 17, 2008
It’s amazing how a couple of years living in another nation can change your definition of just about everything.
We received a care package recently, and it was like Christmas early. But instead of the contents looking like what most Americans would consider a gift, our care package contained items that would have been on our weekly grocery list when we lived in the States.
Now, we can get most typical foods and supplies right here in our small village, sometimes even the same brands (though I have to admit that Oreos and Ritz seem to taste better here, not sure why). Calling this a care package (in a missionary context) almost seems inappropriate since it didn’t contain vital supplies for living in a destitute place. But the familiarity of specific foods, candies and magazines brought such a smile to our faces, and it was then that I realised if I had received this box of supplies three years ago for Christmas or a birthday, I would have been barely amused. Read More…
Missionary Confidential by Email
I jest. Good one!