Comments on: Warts and All: Knowing What and When to Reveal

By: C. Holland

C. Holland — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:51:14 +0000

@Alan: “make us a little more human and our task maybe a little less foreign” I couldn’t agree more!

By: Alan

Alan — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:58:29 +0000

Thanks for this post. As a sinning missionary I often feel the folks back home don’t really have a balanced understanding of our lives overseas. They ca’t relate because they think we’re the ones who’ve got it all figured out. That we stopped sinning long ago and are living righteously on the field every minute of every day. If my own life could be a testimony, it would maybe make us a little more human and our task maybe a little less foreign. I hope if they ever write about me that they include it all–the good, the bad, and the ugly.

By: C. Holland

C. Holland — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:22:52 +0000

@Tai Fu: That balance is the “fine line between honesty and whining” that I speak of. The balance is frustrating. I’ve so often gotten it wrong that it forces me to rely on the discernment of the Holy Spirit and to pause/reflect before I say something. And I still fail, though I’m slowly getting better.

Our stories as missionaries should be just that: the benefit is intimacy with God, the call is from Christ, but it is usually a rough road to get there.

By: Tai Fu

Tai Fu — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 14:50:35 +0000

I do wonder though, I have a tendency to reveal the nasty details on things and I often do it with the intention to be as honest as possible, but oftentimes people say that I am too negative. How do I balance the fine line between pessimism and honesty? I often see the road as a missionary as a very rough road with few benefits, but it is a road that leads to intimacy with God and it's a road that is not a dead end. In that sense it's the only benefit I need. .-= Tai Fu´s last blog ..Ministry update =-.

By: C. Holland

C. Holland — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 23:36:01 +0000

Thank you all.

By: Jan in Mexico

Jan in Mexico — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:26:55 +0000

I had never thought about the whole talk show thing creating the public confession culture, but you are so right! It has taken me years on the mission field to stop confessing all my sins, my bad moods, my past, my struggles. It just is incomprehensible to do such a thing here… I have learned PRUDENCE, and when Americans come and visit us on a short-term trip I am often shocked by how quickly they tell me intimate details of their lives and confess things to me. I think it boils down to being sensitive and led by the Holy Spirit when we share such things, and we share them to help someone, not to be open books to all.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:45:51 +0000

I don't have anything to add to what you said C, except to say that this might be one of your finest posts yet. Well done. .-= Kevin´s last blog ..Scoping Your Mission: The Importance of Food =-.

By: Dan Smith

Dan Smith — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:52:34 +0000

This is the interesting thing about blogging. Sometimes we share more than we should (I do too). However, I think transparency is good, at least to a certain degree. There will, most likely, be things that I will never blog about, and that is good for my audience.

I was involved in the debate you mention, and it is a shame to hear about Carey’s problems. I’m still grateful for what he did for missions.
.-= Dan Smith´s last blog ..The problems behind divorce =-.