today we visited bridget’s role model, mrs. mukupa. mrs. mukupa serves as a deaconess in the local baptist church. as we sat down in her living room, she served us cans of cold coffee and roxie (very bravely!) tried a dried catipillar. she said it wasn’t so bad. tasted like crunchy liver.
our DFA today was "what is a missionary" so we asked mrs. mukupa her opinion. she told us that missionaries are the ones who follow in the footsteps of Christ, and those who brings others closer to God. she told us she considered herself a missionary.
she shared her testimony and talked about the church in zambia—one of the problems in the church here is non-believing church-goers. i was surprised to see this same issue across the ocean, so far from home. i told her that even in america, there is nominal christianity in the church.
i asked her about some of her struggles as a missionary. one of my greatest struggles in living overseas has been seeing the great gulf between the poor and the rich—seeing street kids begging barefoot, or young mothers unable to feed their children. after a moment’s hesitation, she began speaking rapidly, with bridget translating:
her words have echoed in my head all day. as a missionary, or maybe just as a human, there is a real tempataion to just turn away from need, to just give up on compassion. living in a world, a country, a city, where you know you can never do enough. thre will always be empty bellies and injustice. girls sold into prostitution and people suffering from HIV/AIDS. there is the temptation to do nothing, because you can't do everything. to isolate yourself and live in a bubble. compartmentalize your life—misinisty in one box, and the suffering of others in another, as if you could be a Christian without love.
our DFA today was "what is a missionary" so we asked mrs. mukupa her opinion. she told us that missionaries are the ones who follow in the footsteps of Christ, and those who brings others closer to God. she told us she considered herself a missionary.
she shared her testimony and talked about the church in zambia—one of the problems in the church here is non-believing church-goers. i was surprised to see this same issue across the ocean, so far from home. i told her that even in america, there is nominal christianity in the church.
i asked her about some of her struggles as a missionary. one of my greatest struggles in living overseas has been seeing the great gulf between the poor and the rich—seeing street kids begging barefoot, or young mothers unable to feed their children. after a moment’s hesitation, she began speaking rapidly, with bridget translating:
“this is a problem even i deal with. even among zambian people; there's is a difference in way of life. when i see someone with not enough money for some food, and God has blessed me with more, i must share. this is what God requires of christians. if that person dies of hunger, and i feasted on much, i will have to account for that someday before God."
her words have echoed in my head all day. as a missionary, or maybe just as a human, there is a real tempataion to just turn away from need, to just give up on compassion. living in a world, a country, a city, where you know you can never do enough. thre will always be empty bellies and injustice. girls sold into prostitution and people suffering from HIV/AIDS. there is the temptation to do nothing, because you can't do everything. to isolate yourself and live in a bubble. compartmentalize your life—misinisty in one box, and the suffering of others in another, as if you could be a Christian without love.
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