The Missionary Scent
They say that animals can smell fear. That a tiger can look at a human who is trembling inside and actually smell their terror! It could also be said that when we enter a new culture, us foreigners give off a scent that can be picked up on by the locals that come in contact with.
Through nearly a decade of ministry oversees I have come to the realization that whether we are aware or not, our scent plays a huge roll in the impact of our message and mission. I love what Brooks Buser has to say along these lines. I will quote him below. You can check out his full article on Desiring God.
Embodying The Message
Some missionaries "retain the trappings of their home context to the extent that their message smells more of America than it does of the gospel. I’ve seen missionaries on the field who would not learn to hunt while living among a hunter-gatherer people, who could not leave the house without reeking of bug repellent while the people around them had none, or who would not eat food that would be deemed unsanitary in their home cultures.
Legitimate health issues may sometimes require such decisions, but I worry for missionaries who seem to care more about their feet, skin, and stomach than they do about winning an audience with their people. If shepherds should smell like their sheep; missionaries should smell like their people — figuratively and literally." - B.B.
We, are the church, not a building. We are the gospel, not a book. We are God's reflection to the world, not an old painting somewhere in Europe. It is us. The vessel God has chosen to carry his love to the nations are His people.
Dear Missionary, I ask you, what message are you embodying?
The Weight of The Word "Missionary"
The other day I was invited to speak at a church. Upon entering the building with my husband and daughter a few smiling women came to greet us. One held out her hand "welcome, you must be our visiting missionaries". My heart caught in my throat. By definition I am a missionary. I have been serving in Haiti for nearly a decade, have a non-profit there, and speak my second language just as often as my first. But something about being called a "missionary" made me inwardly tremble.
I think a bit of fear is healthy in that regard. After all, I was afraid that I might misrepresent Christ with the world watching. As soon as you say the word "missionary" people are immediately curious. From there the questions flow. Once you are labeled missionary, your actions are watched and questioned.
The title of missionary feels weighty, maybe it should be. We are, after all, meant to be God's love for the world embodied and sent. As the old little poem goes, "I am my neighbors Bible..."
The Repulsive Tourist
The combinations of a thousand different personalities, actions, mindsets, and motives create many varying scents. In Haiti, where I have been serving for the past 8 years, I have caught a whiff of many repulsive smells coming off of visiting missionaries. This is one of them.
If I could name one thing that is common with all the bodies that carry the repulsive tourist scent. It would be the, "It's all about me", attitude. You see, the repulsive tourist is focused on their own personal experience and growth above all else.
Those covered with this scent risk turning the mission into a glorified vacation where the traveler gets a new perspective, but the ministry itself sees little lasting impact. Activities are planned around personal experience rather than community need. Ample time is given to seeing the sights and trying local delicacies from the very beginning of the team formation.
Once the repulsive tourist is done sight seeing and heads home the community is left behind with nothing positive to show for the time the missionary gave. In fact, locals are often left burnt out, relieved, and distrusting of the foreigners who take more than they give.
The Flag Burner
Have you ever walked by a fellow foreigner overseas and immediately noticed the smell of a burning flag? I have, well hypothetically. Honestly, the scent of burning flags is one of the stinkiest and most quickly recognizable smells amongst missionaries.
A flag burner is the person who can spend 20 years on foreign soil, but they never truly adapt. They don't glean beauty from the cultural differences of their host country, but rather seek to hammer their ideals into minds along with Bible verses. English is all they want to speak. Expensive imported foods in a majority of what they eat.
These travelers arrive on foreign soil with the belief that they have all the solutions to the community's problems. Their work centers around doing tasks that locals are capable of doing themselves all while wasting ministry resources and depriving locals from honest work.
The flag burner mindset stems from ethnocentrism — the assumption that their own culture's way of doing things is superior. The flag burner isn't in the foreign country to share God's love, but rather the ideal that America is God. They teach, train, and coerce the people they claim to be serving, to give up loyalty to their own country. These individuals wreck havoc everywhere they go and leave behind the scent of burning flags as locals bow to, not only the savior of the Bible, but their white American savior as well.
The Joy High
You can find the joy high missionary getting high on the adventure of missions. Think of the sounds and smells of a bar scene. It quickly becomes apparent that the joy high traveler is in search of some "mission experience", rather than genuine cross-cultural service.
This type of missionary often has a skewed view of ministry. You will find them taking groupies with orphans and recording themselves eating every meal in order to shock viewers back home. But they aren't ready for the stresses that cultural immersion brings or the painful sacrifices that the mission field demands.
As with any high in life, once the fun wears off the missionary is on to other things. When things get tough, they will quickly be seeking the next attraction. Always on the move, never settling.
The joy high scent can be pleasant at first. In fact, it might hype up the long term missionary for a moment having the person around. Inevitably, the joy high crashes into personal crisis and the once on fire missionary leaves the field and chaos behind them.
The Seal of Authenticity
"Some things cannot be communicated well unless you eat the same food, sleep in the same houses, and walk the same trails of the people God has placed you among. You might tell people you love them and have an incredible message for them, but the seal of authenticity is what you’re willing to lay down." - B.B.
The above aromas are so often floating around in the over-seas mission scene. I admit, in the beginning, I probably wreaked of all three of them at one time or another. If you find yourself falling into any of those categories right now, I am here to tell you that you don't have to stay that way.
No missionary starts out perfectly. We are all flawed and prone to self seeking behaviors. Just as in marriage, the mission field is sanctifying. But we have to choose to let it purge away our idols. And put the people we are called to serve first.
Let's not go, if we aren't willing to sacrifice. Let's not stay, if we aren't willing to learn and adapt. And let's NOT make ourselves large in the eyes of the people back home while the locals remain small in our eyes.
Remember that "the seal of authenticity is what you are willing to lay down." Not what you can do. Nor how many pretty pictures you can show. Not who you can convert or convince to live differently. Not how many countries you have seen or how many trips you have taken. And definitely not how patriotic you are!
A Pleasing Aroma
In light of all of these unpleasant scents that make a negative impact oversees and damage the Christian reputation and Gospel message, I have also seen God do such beautiful purifying work in believers who choose to follow Him with open hearts and minds.
Here are some of the attributes of the Pleasing Aroma Missionary along with verses from the Bible that I believe show us the value of these attributes:
Truly seeking to understand and appreciate the local culture rather than imposing their own ideas - Acts 10:9-16, Galatians 3:28, Romans 2:11, Jeremiah 29:5-7
Prioritize learning the heart language of the people they serve - 1 Corinthians 14:9-11, 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, Daniel 1:4-7
Building deep personal relationships with those they serve - Leviticus 19:34, 1 Thessalonians 2:7, 2 Corinthians 7:2-3
Getting native input on projects rather than just implementing what they think is best - Proverbs 12:15, Proverbs 24:6, Proverbs 11:14
Marked by prayer, reflection, and discernment - Colossians 4:3-4, Ephesians 6:18, 2 Thessalonians 3:1
Spending most of their time serving sacrificially - Galatians 6:10, Mark 10:45, Mark 9:35
The local people speak well of them in greater measure as the years go on - Proverbs 22:1, Galatians 5:22-23, Titus 2:7-8, Ruth 3:11
The pleasing aroma of the true missionary is a scent you won't soon forget. When you catch a glimpse of a true mini Christ oversees their beauty remains with you for life. Friends, let's be that pleasing aroma.