October Newsletter! - Kristen in Slovakia

October Newsletter
The Call to Mission Work
We were asked to reflect upon missions work in this month's
newsletter. I have struggled personally with the word missionary
because it seems to carry with it the connotation of one who goes out
into uncharted territories and loudly proclaims the Good News and
converts all of the heathens. Obviously this is not a good, nor
accurate, definition but admittedly it is the first that pops into my
mind. However, it is about as far from me as possible. I am not a
big fan of public speaking, the place that I am staying at is a
Christian center, and I have yet to see human sacrifices. Or perhaps
the picture of the missionary is someone who is more like Mother
Teresa, living in abject poverty, administering love to the people
that society wouldn't touch. Yes, this does sound slightly closer -
yet I am typing this on a computer, I get fed plenty of food, and
sometimes I feel more like the people here are ministering to me than
I am to them. So then, what really is a missionary? What is my role
to be this year? If I am not to convert the masses or feed starving
children, what am I doing here?
The word missionary is best understood as the work of any Christian
who responds to God's call. One can do mission work anytime,
anywhere, and in any way. You do not need to leave the country to do
mission work or to stand on a pedestal and loudly proclaim the Gospel.
Any time that we show Christ's love to another person we are answering
God's call and doing His work. No matter what our job or vocation is,
God has called us there in order to minister to other people and to
show His love and truth to the world.
One of the most helpful things that we learned in relation to missions
work in the seminars before we left is the idea of accompaniment. The
idea of accompaniment is to form relationships with people and to be
with people where they are. We are not necessarily taking God there,
but finding how He is already at work there. The ministry is with and
among others, not for or to others. We are to become a part of the
community, work in the community, and to help restore the community.
It is also important to recognize that missions work is both giving
and receiving. This applies to all of God's people.
As for my job here, I will be honest and say that I am not yet sure
how everything will work out or exactly why I am here. Right now I am
working at getting to know the boys, the other workers, my host
family, and the people in the community here as much as possible with
the language barrier. I am teaching English and swimming to the boys.
I have started leading Bible studies. I work in the kitchen and help
to clean Mlyn, the building where we work and live. I also will
hopefully start helping one of the women in the community teach her
high school English classes. Those are my official jobs, but ministry
also comes in a random conversation with one of the boys where we
actually understand each other, a smile shared, playing with my host
sisters and the kittens, Monika's little boys coming into the office
and shooting me with their Lego guns where I had to play dead and was
much laughter, listening to the Gypsy music the boys like to play on
the guitar and drum set, listening to one of the boys praying out loud
and calling God the Slovak word for Daddy and hearing the explanation
that while his real dad on earth has failed him, he knows his heavenly
father, or daddy, will not, sharing a conversation with my host mom
while working in the kitchen where she acts out the news stories
related to America with some Slovak and English words from my
dictionary thrown in (my favorite was the one where a woman in Alaska
got bit by a bear and a dog rescued her - or at least that was my
guess from the charades!), gathering everyone together and singing
praise and worship songs, sharing my pictures and culture with the
boys, playing games in English class, Bible studies at my host
family's kitchen table, and much more. I am ministering to them and
they are also ministering to me. Hopefully, together, we will make a
difference in each other's lives and help to show God's love and truth
to each other.
This is where I will end the newsletter. If you have any questions
about anything I have said, any discussion that was sparked by the
newsletter, if you want more information about any of the work that I
have mentioned, or if you would like to update me on your life, please
feel free to e-mail me or send me a letter. I enjoy hearing from and
keeping in contact with all of you!
In the love and peace of Christ,
Kristen