Missionary Lives

These collages seem to be popping everywhere for moms, students, doctors, and everything in between. I found this one of missionary wives quite funny. 

I especially appreciated the "what nationals think we do." This is one of the biggest challenges of being a missionary. Should they live just like those around them, or use their resources to build a comfortable house because labor and supplies are so cheap? Nobody seems to know the answer. 

And in regards to the "what the secular world thinks we do," if you ever ask a missionary what they do they will generally not say, "I am sharing God's love with the people of ____." In my experience, missionaries always have a job such as a pilot, doctor, translator, electrician, etc. in which they show Christ's love through their actions.

"What my friends think we do." This one cracked me up because it's both true and false. When you are living in a Third World country you become more like the culture whether you intend to or not. It's not until you compare yourself to Americans (or whatever your home country is) that you realize how you've changed. So while we may not eat tarantulas, some of the things that seem normal, actually aren't.

The "what supporters think we do," strikes me as fairly accurate. Compared to our modern American homes, missionaries do live in dirty, not very nice houses. But when compared to the typical mud hut down the road, the missionary's  house suddenly seems like a beautiful home.