I Am A Missionary Too
Our church hosted Swaziland Missionaries Wayne and Barbara Myers this past week. It is always a joy to have Wayne and Barbara come to our area when they are on stateside assignment. Over the past 15 years our church has sent numerous teams to work with the Myers in Swaziland, so they are like family to us. You could never meet two more humble servants. On such visits, we usually spent a lot of time talking and recounting various experiences we have shared together on the filed in Swaziland.
Not only do I consider Wayne and Barbara friends, through the years they have become mentors to me. They have taught me a tremendous amount about doing missions and ministry, and not just in Africa. Early on I discovered from Wayne and Barbara that ministry which makes a lasting impact is built on strong relationships. Without exception, every church start the Myers have established in Swaziland has come from a relationship they established with a Swazi family or individual. Relationship building is a trans-cultural necessity if ministry is to be successful. People in any culture will not trust us with their deepest physical or spiritual needs if we haven’t taken the time to get to know them or build a relationship with them.
The Myers have also taught me the importance of staying power. With the Lord’s help, they have been faithful through lots of up and downs. I know from personal conversations that it has been discouraging for them to see young, bright, potential leaders they had personally nurtured fall by the wayside. I know that it has been disappointing to see projects, which required tremendous amounts of time and energy, not produce the results they desired. But through it all, the Myers remained faithful. It is so easy to become discouraged in ministry. Unlike other vocations where results can be seen and measured in tangible ways, some of the fruits of our labor will never be known till eternity.
Wayne and Barbara have also taught me the word missionary is synonymous with the word go. Wayne is constantly going over the next mountain, discovering that new place, carrying the gospel to homestead or group who have never heard. I have had the privilege of going to many of these places myself: Ntutwakazi, Tunzini, Maloma, Matsanjeni, places that are on no one’s map or radar except God’s. The first word, and the key word, in the Great Commission is “go.” For too long we have waited for people to come to us. God’s instructions have always been to go.
Lastly, my working with the Myers through the years has taught me that I am a missionary. In fact, my work with the Myers has taught me that if I am to be effective, that I must be a missionary. The day has long past in America where we can unlock the doors and turn the lights on at the church house and people come. If people are to be reached in our age, in our culture, then we must begin to think, act, and behave like missionaries. We need to study our culture, learn the “language,” and develop strategies to engage people in real and meaningful ways.
The mission field is now my backyard!
Blessings,
Jimmy
