I’m starting a new series on this blog about my life as a young married minister. I am hoping it will encourage anyone who is considering ministry, especially those who want to serve overseas. The purpose of this series is help demystify the life of a missionary and help you to see how God can call you the same way he has called me.

Arguing over Values

One of the most frustrating moments of being engaged was trying to plan a wedding on a missionary’s budget. We wanted to keep the costs low so we could pay off my seminary debt and we both agreed on all the areas where we would try to save money. There was one area though where we argued a lot. The wedding invitations in my opinion should cost less than a dollar each. Carmen wanted to spend more than a dollar each. It was an increase of more than 50%! I remember we had huge fights over it because I thought it reflected a core weakness of Carmen. She didn’t want to save money!

It was funny that in the end it all worked out because I realized the difference in price was really negligible in the grand scheme of things. I realized that in the end Carmen shared my values of saving money but we had different ideas of what that meant in this instance.

It was through pre-marital counseling that we learned how dumb our fight was. The counseling turned out to be one of the best parts of being engaged. Me and Carmen did our pre-marital counseling with Pastor Steven at CEC and it really helped us to identify some of our core values as individuals and the ways we preferred to communicate. After being married more than a year now I can see that I have changed in the ways I relate with my wife; I think for the better.

One of the greatest challenges for a missionary is cross cultural interaction. What is that food? How do I show respect? Why do people act that way?

The immigrant church is a training ground for missions because it forces you to wrestle with these issues. I know there are a lot of people who struggle with attending a church where the senior pastor preaches in a different language but I believe that it can be a huge blessing. Missionaries have to learn what it means to raise up indigenous churches that might look very different than the western churches they grew up attending.

Jesus came into a world that had values very different than his own. He also attended a church where the people were not always speaking his language. Jesus transformed the church and worked patiently with people who did not always understand him. I hope we would do the same. It makes us better servants.

“As more bodies are being recovered the official death toll has risen sharply to over 700. Hundreds remain missing and are feared dead. The worse hit areas are Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities, with whole villages being swept into the sea. However, there were also fatalities in Bukidnon, Compostela Valley, Zamboanga de Norte and the Dumagete in Negros Oriental due to flash floods and landslides. More than 35,000 are huddled in makeshift evacuation centers after losing everything in the flood.

The authorities and the red cross were quick to respond with aid. Thousands of soldiers have been deployed in the area to continue the search and rescue operations. Clean water is a major issue at this stage. Handling the huge number of dead has overwhelmed the services in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan. Many bodies remain unclaimed as whole families have been wiped out.

Pray that more people will be found alive despite the odds and that those needing medical attention will receive the help they need. ”

Please continue to pray

I was inspired to write this post in light of a great article I read on Christianity Today.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/currenttrendscolumns/leadershipweekly/silentradiant.html

1. Being a leader means you’re better than others.

Jesus did not choose his disciples for a glamorous life. He called them to suffer and display the sufferings of Christ. That is not quite the same definition of accomplishment that the world uses, but it is what Christians are called to.

1. Being a leader means you have to always look strong.

Vulnerability and honesty are some of the greatest attributes to have as a leader. No one wants to follow someone who is fake. Be open and honest with how you feel. Being a human being with real emotions doesn’t make you weak.

I just wanted to offer some of my own comments on the recent violence in Egypt between Muslims and Christians. If you haven’t heard about this story you can head to http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/1011/Coptic-Christians-in-Egypt-battle-state-s-version-of-deadly-protest

Our world has seen many angry protests as of late and I have 3 thoughts about these kind of protests

1. Being a Christian increases our difficulty in this life. Jesus said to follow him means being hating by even our own families and many of our brethren in faith are facing that around the world.
2. Christ is our shield and strength. What doesn’t get reported is how these communities support each other in the midst of trial and how God is giving them grace everyday to not only cope with pain but to see the sufferings of Christ in it.
3. Tragic events drive us to God and help us to long for the Kingdom. We are often reminded that as great as this world can be sometimes, we suffer tragedy on a daily basis. The way of this world reminds us that we aren’t home yet.