The other day, I walked outside and saw a group of people pull up in a big van at our care point. They stepped out in neon shirts with huge cameras hanging off of their necks. My first thought was confusion as to why they were there, since we were usually the only people on the base. My curiosity got the best of me, so I went and spoke with one of the men. He explained that they were financial supporters of a baby house opening nearby and they were in town for the week. They were being shown around to see what other ministry work was being done in Nsoko. As I looked around at members of his team, I watched as they were posing for pictures with the kids from the preschool that my team had been working with. In that instant, I saw why missionaries sometimes get a bad reputation. In that moment I completely understood it.
The savior complex is real. Selfish intentions are real. These people had known these kids for all of five minutes and seemed to see them only as a photo opportunity and it bothered me. These are kids that I had come to love in the weeks that I had been there and still hadn’t even taken my own camera out yet. They seemed to be worth nothing more than an object for a Facebook post to these people. As they returned to their van twenty minutes later to continue their tour I really started to think about mission trips.
Before I left for the race, I had people tell me that what I was doing had no benefit to anyone. I heard people say that mission trips are a waste of money. I was told the money missionaries raise to go on missions should just be given directly to the people in other countries to use for food and clothing, but if we look at the big picture that’s not what they need. They don’t need our things or our money. They don’t need our donations to wipe out the need for local farmers or to close down local stores, damaging their economy and causing the few local jobs left in many of these places to be taken away. We aren’t here because these people need us either. I’ll be the first to admit they don’t need us. They don’t need me. What they do need is to know Jesus. People in all nations need to know that there is more outside of their current situation. They need to know that there is a God who loves them more than we can even imagine, so much so that He sent his one and only son to die for our sins. They need to know that they’ve been given the gift of salvation if only they choose to accept Jesus into their hearts.
Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that God called me on the race to share the Gospel with people around the world, and I’m beyond blessed to be able to do that. It’s humbling every day to be able to serve God by getting to spread His Name and love across the nations. In these past two months alone I’ve seen over thirty people give their life to Christ and that is worth way more than the riches of this world. I chose to step out of my comfort zone and walk in boldness this year. As missionaries, we have the opportunity to plant seeds in people’s hearts in even the most rural, unreached areas by sharing the word of God with them. Whether they choose to accept that and pursue a relationship with God is up to them, but they have at least received that seed which hopefully will continue to be watered in them long after we leave. Without a mission trip leading us to these people, some of them might not have had the opportunity to learn about Christ. So as long as God wants, I’ll proudly follow Him as a missionary to wherever He wants to use me.
