La Vida Misionera

I was just writing an email to a professor of mine about missions. I was telling her about how surprised I am at some Christians' lack of knowledg when it comes to missions/missionaries.

Here are my ideas of what some common missionary misconceptions may be.

• All missionaries live on a "compound" with their other co-workers from the United States.
• They all wear pastel plaid skirts from 1983.
• That they go door-to-door handing out black and white tracts in the national language... which by the way, the missionary family does not speak, only the dad/husband does.
• The mom homeschools all the kids.
• In their spare time, they read the KJV Bible and sing old hymns.
• They come home once every 4 years, and think that everything in the States will be the same as it was in 1983, when they left for their new country.
• They will always consider the United States their home and always love going there.
• Their kids can't wait to go to college in the States when they're 18.
• They don't own any electronic equipment, except a rotary phone and a radio, maybe one with a cassette player.
• They don't know what a CD or a DVD is.
• When they come home on furlogh, someone at church puts their pictures on the computer and makes a power point presentation for them to share in church, because they don't know how to use power point, or a scanner, and definitely don't have a digital camera.
• They only interact with the people in their host country when they are saying the "sinner's prayer" with them.
• The women sew their own clothes.

So, those are some of the things that maybe people think about missionaries. Although, that's kind of a stretch, I give people a bit more credit than this! :-)

Although, some missionaries "didn't get the memo." I was in the San Salvador airport last summer, and I saw another gringa. She was sitting behind me in the airport, our backs to each other. A salvadoran woman struck up a conversation with her in english, wanting to know where she was from and why she was there. Since I didn't have anything else to do, I eavesdropped. The woman said "her husband" is a missionary in La Union (a more rural part of El Salvador). She homeschools her kids, and she doesn't really speak spanish because she lives only with her family and other missionaries. Did I mention she was wearing a lavendar jumpsiut with matching lavendar heels? That's where I got the year 1983 for an example in the above list. For those of you who don't know, salvadorans generally dress a lot like we do here, but maybe a little less casual. I didn't feel like I particularly want to grow up to be Mrs. 1983 jumpsuit.

When I think of a missionary who I'd like to be like, I think of my friend Michelle in Honduras. She is very up-to-date with popular youth culture (a good thing since she works quite a bit with teenagers). She dresses like Hondurans (like they do in 2005, not 1983), or maybe a little more casual. She uses technology and pop-culture in relating to young people. She LIVES among other Hondurans, in a similar manner that they live in.

That is more how I want to be. If I can't relate to other people my age in Mexico, it will be detrimental to my ministry. I want to be up to speed with Mexican pop-culture and style (while not spending my whole existence trying to keep up with the Joneses). Anyhow, I've gone on long enough about this, so the bottom line is that you must live AMONG the people in a culturally similar way or they probably won't be too keen on hanging around you.

By the way, Feliz Cinco de Mayo!


Here is Michelle, a real live missionary who doesn't wear pastel plaid. (She's the very front lady in the picture)


Young people hanging out in the ministry center / coffee house in Queretaro. See, they like to do the same stuff that we do here! And the room is decorated "hecka tight!"