Lindsey could easily be confused for Martha. Whatever needs to be done, she is there to help.
On disaster relief trips, on Spring Break mission trips, in leading worship, and in service as BCM president, Lindsey has served in a variety of ways.
On one night this past school year, she was busy preparing the slideshow for our BCM Missions Night, a time designed for students to share about their past mission trips as well as showcase upcoming summer missions opportunities.
As we were finishing our preparations, I learned that, despite being involved in virtually every other capacity, Lindsey had never served as a summer missionary.
“Why not?” I asked.
After a brief pause in the conversation, she responded, “I don’t know.”
Lindsey is not Martha, but her service here distracted her from considering how she could serve there.
I don’t think Lindsey felt attacked in that moment, as I tried to empty my tone of anything that could be interpreted as derision. It was simply an honest question.
With dozens of students involved in our ministry, I most often find myself telling large groups of students why they should go.
I was reminded that night of how important it is to meet with students one-on-one and ask why they haven’t gone.
If nothing else, a genuine question gives someone the opportunity to voice concerns he or she may have about missions (which Lindsey later did).
Taking into account the relationship between the questioner and questioned, you may be able to pray about and work through those concerns.
You may not even have to. Just asking the question may help someone realize that he or she doesn’t have a good reason for staying.
And who knows? Maybe the person you ask will end up spending her summer doing research and evangelism among the least-reached people groups of Chicago!
