Are Missionaries Normal?

I remember my first few months back in the US. It was my senior year of high school, I was still getting used to being away from Haiti and adjusting to "American life". The first couple of months were quite difficult, but once I got over that hump I absolutely loved my experience of living in the US.

When I first arrived in the US I remember I went to put a meal wrapped in foil in the microwave and my host mom almost had a heart attack when she realized what I was about to do. Thankfully I didn't burn the house down! As a teenager who lived in Haiti most of her life there were many "common sense" things that didn't occur to me. As time went on I adapted and got the hang of this "American living". I knew all the current references, songs, and what different "slang" words meant. I was a "cool kid" and I hung out with cool African kids.

My parents and brother soon came for my graduation. I was so excited to see them! After graduation we left for our yearly East Coast trip. As time went on I noticed that conversations with my family were quite different. Talks of Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Sephora, the most current celeb news and Nordstrom didn't interest them. I remember the looks of "we don't care" I often got. Eventually I realized that these things weren't important to me either when I first came.

As Missionaries we live our lives serving others. Sometimes to the point where we don't think about ourselves and how we live. The normal way of living in the US is not the normal way of living for missionaries. As a missionary there are sacrifices that you have to make and if you aren't willing to make them it's most likely you weren't called to do this. I've been living in the US for three years now. I've adapted to the "American way of living" but I will never forget where I came from and the missionary way of living.

So, are missionaries normal? The answer is no. Why would you want to be normal when you can be so unique and so pleasing in God's eyes?

Remember, you don't have to move to a foreign country to be a missionary. You can be a missionary right in your own community.

Here are some photos from MOHI reminding us why we love what we do.