Missionaries in Itineration
I believed it would be presumptuous of the missionary to feel that he has a "special" calling in comparison to the rest of the body. It is equally irresponsible of the Body to place the entirety of the human burden for the Plan of Salvation on the missionary's shoulders. At the same time, I wouldn't have any Christian underestimate the power of her participation within the Body or limit her scope of God-granted influence.
What I mean to say is that a missionary is not only on call in a foreign field, but in every place he finds himself. I think it's important that the missionary understand the economy of Heaven. It appears to me that God set things up in such a way, since the time of the Levites, that those who were being served are the one's responsible for financially supporting the work of the servers. That means that the missionary has an obligation to serve those who support him. Our supporters are at home, in our rich American churches, not in Russia, Ghana, Kazakstan, Peru or any other poor country where we serve who are unable to support our work. So the missionary must accept the responsibility of service to the supporters of her ministry. And does it not follow that the service comes first? We are obliged to minister to our supporters!
So, if I'm at home support-raising, it doesn't mean I suddenly stop serving God while I wait for the dollars to role in so I can start my ministry. I must ask Him, "What will you have me do here and now to serve you and to further the Plan?" After all, I possess the same Spiritual gifts in Virginia, U.S.A. as I do in Russia or Mexico or the moon! I will also either bear fruit or not, no matter where I may be physically located. In this regard I think of the Apostle Paul, as I do so often as a guide and example, and discovered in his account of his desire to visit Rome on his way to Spain, a few interesting facts that directly influence my perception of the support-raising ministry. In Romans 15:23-25 Paul writes:
But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to see you, I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to visit you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem�(emphasis mine).
There are several important issues addressed in this passage. Paul had obviously completed his work in this location. I believe he had God's permission to move on, now that he'd finished God's work in that place. Paul is operating on God's time despite his own personal longing "for many years" to go to Rome.
