“This was not my dream for your life or mine!” Many parents are shocked when their kids express a desire to pursue a missionary career. Questions surface such as:
“Will I be able to cope with my child and grandkids in a different country?”
“Will my child and their family be safe in a dangerous place?”
“Will my child be financially stable?”
“Is my child wasting their life?”
How can you honor your parents in how you communicate your decision to become a missionary? Empathize. Explain. Enlist. Endure.
Empathize with how your parents are dealing with the loss of their hopes and expectations for yours and their life. Listen patiently, understanding the sadness they are experiencing. “Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19)
Explain your Biblical convictions for your decision. Explain how the Bible is the story of God’s plan to gather worshippers from all nations and how you want to be part of fulfilling God’s global mandate among a people group where the church does not yet exist. Like the apostle Paul, your ambition is rooted in God’s Word. “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. Rather, as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” (Romans 15:20-21) Paul’s ambition was not just a personal ambition. It was rooted in what was written in God’s Word.
How can you honor your parents in how you communicate your decision to become a missionary?
Empathize. Explain. Enlist. Endure.
Enlist your parents in the process. Ask them to join you as a partner through prayer and participation in connecting others to what God is doing. Keep them updated on your prayer needs and ways they can be involved. Share your desire to have the same partnership the apostle Paul had with the Philippian church. “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now.” (Phil. 1:3-5)
Endure in your commitment to see God glorified among the nations. Keep the communication line open with your parents even if they don’t support your decision. Ask for their input and questions. Endure in obedience to making Christ known among the nations and in your commitment to honoring Him by honoring your parents. Walk in obedience to both commands:
“Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” (Eph. 6:2-3)
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:37-39)
