10 things new missionaries should know
Is there really time to “DO NOTHING?”
There is no–DO NOTHING! There is always something to do for the Lord. The many hurdles that the Devil places in the path of the missionary are not walls that cannot be overcome. They are obstacles to be traversed. There is always a way to conquer them. Too many missionaries get discouraged because of hurdles. They assume that God has put them in their path to show them they are not doing His will, but this is not true. Great victories do not come without overcoming great obstacles. It is the most difficult things in the world that have the greatest value attached to them.
I was in a closed country when the actions of another missionary caused the communist government to “crack down” on Christianity. I was told that I was to: “DO NOTHING! Don’t have any teaching, evangelizing, Bible, anything at all that could compromise my family with the government.” This was a quandary for me because I felt as though I couldn’t be true to myself and God if I had come all of this way to just live a passive lifestyle. I didn’t want to be on a permanent vacation. After personal prayer and Bible study, God showed me that there is always something to do for Him.
I began preparing Bible lessons that I could teach in the future. I wrote a book of basic Christian fundamentals. I began studying the language wholeheartedly. My wife and I would walk into the town every evening to get to know the way of life. We would stop in different shops where they would invite us to sit and chat with them. Here I developed my limited language skill. I made tapes of Bible lessons to have translated in the future. All of this kept me extremely busy. I learned that there is NO “DO NOTHING” in the Lord’s work. There is only “GO;” Go into all of the world and preach the gospel. Paul said he was all things to all men that he might by all means save some. That idea: “all things,” “all men,” “all means”, can keep you busy for a very long time. There is never a “DO NOTHING” time in the Lord’s work.
If you cannot think of what you should be doing for the Lord, (and it happens from time to time), it is because you are just confused at the moment. Be still and know that He is God. Be patient and wait upon the Lord. There is always something to do.