The risky business of foreign missions

 

The risky business of foreign missions

 

Some years back a major global missionary society held a conference of its research group. Just before morning tea one day it was announced that the following session would be on “Managing risk in missions” and would be led by someone from the finance department. You could hear expectations thud to the floor – ‘an accountant talking about risk’.

 

The session started as expected. An accountant-looking person ran through the many risks linked to mission work: health, education of children, financial shortfall, kidnapping, banishment, death and more. He spoke realistically about these issues and outlined some prudent risk management measures. He paused: ‘let me now tell you about the greatest risk in missions’. Everyone was listening. ‘Our greatest risk is that we are so risk averse that we go off mission and the people of this region do not hear about Jesus.’ He then reminded the group of the society’s mission statement and pointed out that the more they remained on mission the more they were in the territory of risk. This was because their key mission was to change the long-held world views and belief systems of the peoples that hosted them. Their danger was that they would become so skilled in risk minimisation that they went off mission.  

 

What use is a missionary society that has lost its mission and been domesticated to avoid risk?

 

Similar issues still arise in missionary work.

 

The recent World Watch list by Open Doors lists the most dangerous places to be a Christian (https://www.opendoors.org.au/assets/WWL-Report.pdf). This is a grim reminder that just to be a Christian in many places is dangerous, let alone to be a readily identifiable foreign national doing outreach work. To go anytime is to be at risk.

 

The present global Covid-19 outbreak raises further issues. It may be far safer for the missionary to say in their home country, even in the more Covid-affected nations of the west, than to go to a country with poor infection control, slower vaccination rates and a compromised health system. To go now is to be at risk.

 

Yet still the missionaries will go. To some their going will seem foolish, reckless, a dangerous disregard for circumstances and a lack of concern for others.

 

 So why will they still go and go now?

 

It is not because they are foolhardy, or blind to facts or have a wish to be martyred.

 

It is because they know the truth of the saying of Jim Elliot whose death anniversary was marked this week: He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.

 

They also know the word of him who said: For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it (Matt 10:39).