Why do We Romanticize Foreign Missions?

[Praxeas]

Originally Posted by mizpeh

How long do foreign countries need missionaries to come and start works in their countries? When should the nationals take over the work themselves and support it themselves?

I'm not sure I understand your last sentence.

Most countries are third world nations. Many don't allow national organizations but the do allow missionaries. Other places, such as Saudi Arabia, we will always have missionaries there incogneto until SA changes politically

It takes time, money and lots of effort to bring a group of people in a nation up to the point of being financially independent enough to build churches, train their own church builders.

And even then they often still don't have the means to evangelize their entire nation so we still have missionaries who feel called to go there just as we have men here in the states called to go into some city and start a church

[Praxeas]

Originally Posted by mizpeh

I'm not sure I understand your last sentence.

Read what I was responding to

[onefaith2]

So is it a crime for a man or woman to be passionate about their area of call? I am thinking that Charnock is offended because he viewed Missionaries getting more sympathy than American co-workers who start works. However Sister Alvear is passionate about her area and rightly so! Neither can know the sacrifices of the other. I think its a crime to judge each other on "who sacrifices most!" This is where Pentecostalism/Christianity can fall short in my opinion. We compare ourselves to ourselves way too much. We need more balance.

I'm be afraid if someone was not passionate about their area of call. The thing is, we can't let our area of call override someone else's area of call.

Why should we put each other down on these matters?

[Praxeas]

Missionaries in general get a little bit more sympathy perhaps because they have been uprooted from family and friends, left their homes and their homelad to live in a foreign nation with strange customs, rules and dangers. Their children often have no friends to talk with for a great deal of time,

[onefaith2]

Originally Posted by Praxeas

Missionaries in general get a little bit more sympathy perhaps because they have been uprooted from family and friends, left their homes and their homelad to live in a foreign nation with strange customs, rules and dangers. Their children often have no friends to talk with for a great deal of time,

Yes and I'm there are home missionaries who move to California from the east coast away from family or friends. I know some actually. I guess its a matter of being 3 K miles away or 7K miles away. Sacrifices are abound for sure in the missionary field, at home or abroad.

I always wondered why there wasn't a system like foreign missions for Home missions in the UPC. However recent developments are showing some signs of it developing. The UPC (not sure about other orgs) tend to use the mother-daughter work concept. I wonder what would happen if churches used the same setup for missionaries? I suppose churches would not be able to support as many as they do.

[Charnock]

Originally Posted by onefaith2

So is it a crime for a man or woman to be passionate about their area of call? I am thinking that Charnock is offended because he viewed Missionaries getting more sympathy than American co-workers who start works. However Sister Alvear is passionate about her area and rightly so! Neither can know the sacrifices of the other. I think its a crime to judge each other on "who sacrifices most!" This is where Pentecostalism/Christianity can fall short in my opinion. We compare ourselves to ourselves way too much. We need more balance.

I'm be afraid if someone was not passionate about their area of call. The thing is, we can't let our area of call override someone else's area of call.

Why should we put each other down on these matters?

Not at all.

[onefaith2]

Originally Posted by Charnock

Not at all.

Thats what I gather. You are arguing that American pastors suffer but they don't get the sympathy missionaries do, are you not?.

[riverslivnwtr]

Today we can evangelize the world from here...

Right now I regularly ask that the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into the harvest..and there is a specific area that I have been assigned by the Holy Spirit and, I always pray that every area of the world will have an intercessor praying for the harvest to come in....

I watch over my area like it's a garden ....
and I feel no guilt about anything ...

[Charnock]

Originally Posted by onefaith2

Thats what I gather. You are arguing that American pastors suffer but they don't get the sympathy missionaries do, are you not?.

Partly.

The bigger issue is that some foreign missionaries snap at, and bite, the very hands that feed their ministry. There is sometimes a feeling that they "deserve" things.

Don't beg for money and then snipe at the folks who are compassionate enough to give it.

[onefaith2]

Originally Posted by Charnock

Partly.

The bigger issue is that some foreign missionaries snap at, and bite, the very hands that feed their ministry. There is sometimes a feeling that they "deserve" things.

Don't beg for money and then snipe at the folks who are compassionate enough to give it.

Are these foreign missionaries on here you speak of? I've never had one do this. They usually say pray and do whatever you feel you need to do. The only thing I have been pointedly asked to do is pray for them.