Some days, I’m jealous of other people’s work. Not because they make more money, or have more status, or better hours. I find myself at times being jealous of some people’s work because they can point to exactly what they accomplished that day. They can say, “I built this bookshelf. I crocheted this blanket. I planted this garden. I surgically removed this tumor.” They can point to something tangible that they accomplished with their efforts for the day. My job is a little more hidden, a little less tangible. As an occupational therapist I can often say, “I strengthened these muscles today” or “I helped these neuronal synapses reconnect today,” or “I helped this patient feel more like themselves today even though they’re in the hospital,” but sometimes because my work can lack the tangible, immediate evidence of my efforts, I look for evidence of effectiveness in other ways. I can see the effects of my work in the long-term gains of my patients and in how they feel seen and supported as whole persons, not just diagnoses, in the rehab process.
I found myself thinking about these sorts of differentiations in the world of mission work as well. Over the years, I’ve been on a fair amount of mission trips. Some more local in focus, some abroad. In some, I did construction, cleaning, or demolition projects for housing that needed a lot of attention. In others, I taught English to students desiring to expand their language skills. In most of them, the efforts of our work would be easily evident in before and after pictures, lesson plans, and language acquisition. But recently I had the privilege of going on a mission trip for a different purpose. We were not there to build a house, or teach a class, or clean a kitchen (though some of those things also happened!). We were there to care for the missionaries.
A missionary family we support has been in Singapore for five years teaching at the East Asia School of Theology (EAST), and provide theological training to pastors and ministry leaders from 18 countries to equip church leaders to minister in their home countries. A small group traveled all the way to Singapore to love on and support this family and provide our own strategic care for them!
Singapore has a culture with a strong fear of failure. It is an incredibly driven and productivity-oriented place. I get them! There is something in my heart that is a little bit Singaporean and needs to be reminded of the importance of care and rest. We were able to remind the family we were visiting (and ourselves) that burnout is not a sign that we are in the Lord’s will. I loved the wisdom of a student who shared, “Sustainability and well-being are also forms of stewardship.” She’s right. Stewardship is not just of money, things, and time, but also of ourselves.
Hospitality is more than just dinner, it is presence. That is what we were able to offer – presence, support, news from home, prayers, and tangible love. Good times were spent playing with kids, lounging around the living room and soaking up the “air con,” as well as listening to students share their capstone presentations.
We provided care, held space, and offered stewardship—the stewardship of people, of stories, of hardships, of lived experiences. We got to be there while Mom and Dad unabashedly showed off about their lives, their kids, their ministries, their friends, and their favorite places to eat. We got to meet impressive students ministering in challenging contexts with great joy. We got to appreciate all the bougie glitz Singapore offers and also the unseen people who work so diligently to allow this society to continue functioning.
While I could be tempted to look differently on this trip than other mission trips because we don’t have something tangible to show for our efforts like a constructed house or a disinfected kitchen, the benefits of caring well for those on the mission field are not only present, but also ongoing. Our friends got to soak up love and laughter and the feeling that they are well worth the effort of us flying around the globe to support them. I will read all future news letters from the EAST school with a far greater depth of understanding and ability to pray with specificity. And in that way the trip, and its benefits, are not only abundantly present, they have lived on well past the end of the trip.