Missionaries in Itineration
Yet among the new faces are many others that are familiar and comforting. I approach a supporter of my ministry � the father of a newborn little girl. A smile lights his face as he gives me his hand to shake. We exchange warm greetings and catch up on the minutiae of life. In a natural break in our conversation, a frown appears on his brow, and he asks, "I've been wanting to ask you something. Isn't it an extraordinary burden for you and other missionaries to raise your own support?" Concentrating a bit he gently continues, "I mean, your work is in the field bringing others to Christ and here you are spending all this time trying to raise the funds you need to get there!" I smile in understanding, and take an opportunity to explain the purpose of our support-raising ministry.
You see I love it when people ask me this question! Yes, I said support-raising ministry. And no, I didn't always feel enthusiastic about this subject�quite the contrary. I remember well my introduction to faith-promise missions�
The Call
Becoming a missionary in the first place requires supernatural intervention. In my case, Jesus had to knock a couple of times� I said no the first time. I wasn't too impressed with what I perceived to be the missionary lifestyle. By the time He knocked on my door again, I had experienced a very intense year of spiritual transformation and preparation � I was finally ready� or so I thought. I did commit my life to God's service and then proceeded to investigate the ways and means of fulfilling this call.
The Facts
It so happened (yea, right!) that I knew a missionary couple working in my state with a Hispanic congregation. I had been helping them out a bit with the music ministry and so it was natural for me to ask them about becoming a missionary. I wanted to know the basics like, "Can you actually make a living at this?" And, "How?" I've always had my eye on the ball. After a couple of hours of discussion, I felt convinced one could physically survive as a missionary, which made it a viable field for me to consider. I can imagine God shaking His head and laughing a bit at my mediocrity.
Lost somewhere in all the information I'd gathered that Saturday afternoon was the fact that these missionaries raised their own support � 100 percent of it. I seem to remember hearing them tell me this, but at the time I was more concerned about the output than about the input. I understood I'd get a salary and ministry expenses and all that, I just phased out a bit about where that all came from�but not for long! Once I did get it, I almost panicked! Needless to say, my new Boss and I had a long talk about it and have been talking ever since!
