2008 Woodie Awards
The Last Straw
Missionaries's deaths open eyes
Issue date: 10/26/05 Section: Opinion
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News Editor
I'm heart broken. No, I didn't just go through a break-up or the devastation of being without my television shows due to sports. My sorrow comes from the lack of belief in ourselves.
I recently watched the documentary, Beyond the Gates of Splendor, about the spearing slaughter of five missionaries in Ecuador, 1956. Among these missionaries were Nate Saint and Jim Elliot.
These missionaries and their families attempted to make contact with the Waodani tribe. They were gradually successful. One afternoon, a misunderstanding took place and the Waodani, under the belief they were about to be harmed, went and speared the "foreign" missionaries.
Their families stayed and continued God's calling to missions and made a relationship impact on the tribe that continues today.
Steve Saint, son of Nate, was just a child when his father was murdered. Now he is a leader in the mission field of the Waodani and great friends with Mincaye, one of the men who speared his father.
Steve's son, Jesse, grandson to Nate, stayed with the tribe for a year, becoming great friends with Mincaye also. The time came for Jesse to go to school. The farewell was hard to do. Jesse made a graduation request to have Mincaye there to watch the ceremony, and Mincaye went.
This story astounds me! As Christians, do we make ourselves aware to the grace God has in store for the story of each of our lives?
In the movie, they make the connection that Americans and Waodani are similar, and I would have to agree. When the tribe would hear about the events in Columbine or 9/11, they couldn't believe people would kill others they barely know, realizing the tribe themselves once lived this way. That is, until they were presented the gospel.
The whole time I was watching this film, I really felt God's beginning growth and preparation for the mission trip I'll be going with a L.I.G.H.T. team this year. I don't mean to sound cliché, but I kept thinking of past ministry experiences and how, at the time, we're impacted by the trip, but after a while, we return to normalcy at home and forget what took place in our lives on the trip. I'm just as guilty of this as others are.
Our problem is, when it comes to missions work, we're unaware of God's grace He'll bring to us. We just assume we can't be used. I don't necessarily feel called to full-time missions at this time, but I do feel a call to make my mark and do all that I can when I get called to partake in these trips.