Lausanne World Pulse – World Pulse Archives – World Pulse Archives
“The veterans seem to have forgotten what it was like when they first arrived on the field. Why should we repeat the same mistakes they made?” When it comes to the tensions between new missionaries and veterans, Solomon’s ancient observation holds true: “There’s nothing new under the sun.” At a recent mission-agency association meeting, my colleagues around the table concurred. As a new generation is joining their agencies, the talking points have changed little; only the players are different.
The interesting reality is that yesterday’s new missionaries, now in places of leadership responsibility, are fielding questions similar, if not the same, to those they asked their leaders twenty-five years ago. The questions might revolve around field ministry (After xx years of ministry on this field, how come so much of the job is still undone? Who’s to say that this is the best strategy for this ministry? I think I know something better).
Or they might touch on philosophical differences: (Don’t you understand that younger people think differently? Why don’t you respect that my family comes before my ministry?)
On the other hand, sometimes the questions relate to agency operation: (What are your vacation benefits? Tell me about your insurance plan.)
Missionary leaders have their hands full piloting the ensuing discussions, but ultimately it isn’t the actual question that poses the biggest challenge. Rather, it’s the dynamic of working with people. Missionaries, both young and old, tend to be highly motivated, self starters and independent. Perhaps only from such moxie can a global evangelistic effort advance, but it doesn’t enhance team relationships, even among missionaries of the same age. Throw in different generational perspectives and the mix gets even more complicated.
Yet somebody has to referee the team in the contest between the young-and-full-of-bright-ideas versus the experienced-and-know-what-needs-to-be-done. It’s enough to make leaders quail at the prospect or fail in the stretch, and everybody involved shares the fallout of a crash. Here are a few gathered observations that may be of some help.
1. All missionaries are equal, but some are more equal than others. In the spirit of Philippians 2:1-2, it shouldn’t be too much to expect that fellow missionaries can reach consensus on their differences. But even though the egalitarian nature of missionary agencies means everybody has the privilege to speak, that doesn’t mean that everyone has an equally valuable contribution to make on a given issue.
If we want to know, for example, what new values a fresh generation brings into the organization, the members of that generation can shed the brightest light. On the other hand, the question “What does it take to do effective ministry in this place?” can probably benefit most from those who have a proven track record in the endeavor.
2. I’m not okay, you’re not okay. To the missionary team, as to any other kind of enterprise, everybody brings some baggage from their experience. We baby boomers expected deference from our seniors because of our unique generational perspective. Now we have the opportunity to extend the same consideration to our younger co-workers who bring their own global experience-even more convoluted than ours-into the team dynamic.
3. Little ships stay close to the shore. In his diminutive book, A Little Exercise for Young Theologians, Helmut Thielicke warned freshly minted theologians not to spout scholastic formulae still warm from the academic oven. Such youthful self-assurance not only fails to impress anybody, it also bespeaks what used to be called vainglory.
New young missionaries would do well to apply Thielicke’s caution to the realm of cross-cultural ministry. It takes a couple of years just to start getting a grasp of what you don’t know.
4. Looking down on others blinds us to God. No doubt the greatest hindrance to harmony-whether between generations or otherwise-is the human heart. C.S. Lewis, in Mere Christianity, established that the center of Christian morality is humility. He went on to eloquently reflect, “Now what you want to get clear is that Pride is essentially competitive-is competitive by its very nature.”
Many older missionaries live with pride of experience and tenure; many younger ones with pride of youth and vitality. But because pride is like a one-way mirror, we can only see it in others, never in ourselves. It lurks to corrupt every motive and undermine every relationship. Surely we all need daily to heed Paul’s admonition, “For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think …” (Romans 12:3) May the Lord of the Harvest help us to find ways not just to resolve our generational differences, but to employ them as launching pads for even more effective ministry than otherwise possible.