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Hitchhikers Guide to Missions
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March 9, 2025
A Christian Book with Honesty
17 November 2024
I have to admit that at first I didn’t have too much expectation for this book, considering that it seems to be one of the countless number of Christian books that have been written over the years, and many of them are rather substandard at best. Also, it seems as if it is a typical Christian book that tries to gain interest through using pop-culture references (if only in the title) to grab attention. However, as I read it I realised that it is actually much more than what the title gives away.
Sure, it is about Christian ministry, or rather going overseas to be a mission worker, but it turns out that it is written by a female missionary of Asian-American heritage, and she doesn’t pull any punches either. In fact, it gave me a perspective of mission that seems much, much different to what I actually expected it to be.
Okay, I’ve never been a missionary, not in the sense that I have been overseas and lived in a different culture, but the way that it is promoted in the west gives us a rather different perspective. Like, there are ideas that Christian mission is simply a bunch of Westerners going to a different culture to basically Westernise this culture. If that is what you think mission is, then she clearly states that you are in the wrong profession. In fact, if that is your attitude then you are going to fail miserably.
She does actually discuss pushback that missionaries have received due to this perception, especially on the mission field, and it is a serious issue, especially in cultures where our concept of privacy, and the private home, simply do not exist. Then there is this idea that missionaries will live in luxury in developing countries, and that is another thing that is simply not going to work. Like, I remember going to a church in Hong Kong where there was a mansion next door, and my first thought was ‘I hope that isn’t where the vicar lives’.
Yeah, I’ve had issues with pastoral staff working in a job where they are loved by the congregation while I have to then go to work on Monday had have to deal with a toxic work environment. Okay, it turns out that being a pastor in a church isn’t actually all that glamorous, especially when you look a little behind the scenes, and have to deal with all of the criticism that they receive. Then again, that isn’t always said, and the reality is that the life style choice is marketed the same way as everything else. Sure, there are a lot of passionate people who go into ministry, especially when the money isn’t all that great (though the opposite seems to be believed since a lot of people think that churches are little more than money sinks).
Personally, I got a lot from the book, not only because it was written by somebody that isn’t the stereotypical white, Anglo-Saxon, church going pastor, but rather somebody who has experienced the missions field, and has had to deal with all the problems and issues that come along with it. One interesting thing that is explored at the end is the idea that as a missionary your job isn’t to hang around, but to rather train up the future leadership, and then move on to another field. I do wonder how many actually do that, though a lot that I have known seem to simply hang around for an extended period of time. Look, I’m not a missionary, and I really feel that these days we need native churches that are self-sufficient and that we should be spending more time in our own backyard, providing social services that the governments are more and more often not willing to give, but they are my thoughts. Still, it was an eye-opening book, especially from the Eighties, and is well worth checking out.
17 November 2024
I have to admit that at first I didn’t have too much expectation for this book, considering that it seems to be one of the countless number of Christian books that have been written over the years, and many of them are rather substandard at best. Also, it seems as if it is a typical Christian book that tries to gain interest through using pop-culture references (if only in the title) to grab attention. However, as I read it I realised that it is actually much more than what the title gives away.
Sure, it is about Christian ministry, or rather going overseas to be a mission worker, but it turns out that it is written by a female missionary of Asian-American heritage, and she doesn’t pull any punches either. In fact, it gave me a perspective of mission that seems much, much different to what I actually expected it to be.
Okay, I’ve never been a missionary, not in the sense that I have been overseas and lived in a different culture, but the way that it is promoted in the west gives us a rather different perspective. Like, there are ideas that Christian mission is simply a bunch of Westerners going to a different culture to basically Westernise this culture. If that is what you think mission is, then she clearly states that you are in the wrong profession. In fact, if that is your attitude then you are going to fail miserably.
She does actually discuss pushback that missionaries have received due to this perception, especially on the mission field, and it is a serious issue, especially in cultures where our concept of privacy, and the private home, simply do not exist. Then there is this idea that missionaries will live in luxury in developing countries, and that is another thing that is simply not going to work. Like, I remember going to a church in Hong Kong where there was a mansion next door, and my first thought was ‘I hope that isn’t where the vicar lives’.
Yeah, I’ve had issues with pastoral staff working in a job where they are loved by the congregation while I have to then go to work on Monday had have to deal with a toxic work environment. Okay, it turns out that being a pastor in a church isn’t actually all that glamorous, especially when you look a little behind the scenes, and have to deal with all of the criticism that they receive. Then again, that isn’t always said, and the reality is that the life style choice is marketed the same way as everything else. Sure, there are a lot of passionate people who go into ministry, especially when the money isn’t all that great (though the opposite seems to be believed since a lot of people think that churches are little more than money sinks).
Personally, I got a lot from the book, not only because it was written by somebody that isn’t the stereotypical white, Anglo-Saxon, church going pastor, but rather somebody who has experienced the missions field, and has had to deal with all the problems and issues that come along with it. One interesting thing that is explored at the end is the idea that as a missionary your job isn’t to hang around, but to rather train up the future leadership, and then move on to another field. I do wonder how many actually do that, though a lot that I have known seem to simply hang around for an extended period of time. Look, I’m not a missionary, and I really feel that these days we need native churches that are self-sufficient and that we should be spending more time in our own backyard, providing social services that the governments are more and more often not willing to give, but they are my thoughts. Still, it was an eye-opening book, especially from the Eighties, and is well worth checking out.
Displaying 1 of 1 review