Whether I made my point well or not, or deserve your gracious statement, Bravo!

Perhaps the best “comparison” scripture of all is Paul’s statement in 2 Corinthians 11. In verse 17 he prefaces the remarks he is about to make with a disclaimer that “I am not speaking as the Lord would, but in foolishness, in this confidence of boasting.” Then in verse 21 he says (NASB), “To my shame I must say that we have been weak by comparison…” And of course the denouement of the entire section is seen powerfully in 2 Corinthians 12.9, 10.

May we all be as weak as Paul, and therefore as reliant on Christ. And may we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

Additionally, while the title is “The church’s priorities,” some of these (numbers 2, 6, 7 (maybe) and 8 ) seem to be individual in focus rather than corporate, though they could spill over into the church. But based on the title, I’ll try to think like the church.

The grid, in my thinking, is to do first what is important and urgent, then to do what is important but not urgent, then to do what is urgent but not important, and then to dismiss completely (and not do at all) things that are neither important or urgent.

Everything on your list could be important at some point, but those that seem both important and urgent include 3 and 6. Those that seem important but less urgent include 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, and 9. Those that seem either less important or still less urgent include 5 and 10.

But if one assumes that everything on this list has to be done and is of a mindset to reduce the list quickly, it would seem easy to say yes to 2, hand off the baby (6) to someone who knows what to do with a baby (or take the baby with you), and then start taking water to the village as quickly as you can so that no children die from dehydration.

As for the poor preacher who has been beaten, take him with you, too. If he’s been preaching for very long, he’s probably used to it by now — either physically or mentally (see 2 Corinthians 11.22-28).

Still, in the race we are running, we strain for the prize ahead, not to get ahead of our neighbor.

A catchy phrase, that, and I like it both for its wording and its intent. I agree that our eyes should be on Jesus and not on those who are running beside us, but I’m not sure that it is a bad thing to do some comparing along the way.

For instance, Jesus said, “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5.20, NASB). Jesus is not setting up a competition, but at a minimum he is acknowledging that there is some basis for comparison.

But it is important to remember that there are two general aspects to Christianity, and I think it is important to not get them confused with each other. One is salvation, and we are saved by grace, not by works. The other is living as disciples of Christ — nothing to do with salvation — and it is there, I think that we have not only the ability, but even the duty, to do a little bit of comparing.

Not necessarily with others, perhaps, but at least with ourselves. (See Hebrews 5.11-14.)

…your “natural” Christianity already makes you better than most, and that is good enough for you.

I know you weren’t recommending that kind of personal comparison of our spritual prowess, but it’s something we do instinctively. But if we do that, we could become arrogant or dejected when we don’t have all the information and it’s completely moot in terms of salvation, anyway. Jesus teaches that what’s important is the heart, the attitude, the goal — all of which can be hard to perceive, and the evidence may be obscured by outward works.

I’ll never forget a conversation I overheard many years ago between two missionaries. One was talking about how anxious she was to go home to the States to see her sister, who was “way more spiritual than I am or will ever be.” I was shocked that someone would compare herself so openly to another. I was perplexed over the definition of “more spiritual than.” I was bothered that someone would have such a fatalistic attitude over her own spiritual condition.

Now, though, I wonder if she was mourning a lazy dependence on her “natural” Christianity and her status as a woo-hoo missionary, longing for more but unwilling to get there. Ultimately, she returned to the States and joined a passionate, Spirit-filled, tongues-speaking house church. Although a lot of the work you mention is individual in nature, an on-fire community can be a tremendous help in providing impetus and high expectations for the journey.

Still, in the race we are running, we strain for the prize ahead, not to get ahead of our neighbor.

It’s understandable that religious parents and leaders of today would want their kids to be conservative in their behavior, playing it safe, not getting involved in the wrong crowd, not picking fights with other people. But does that overprotection dampen their spiritual growth and keep them from acting on God’s prompting in the moment? In fact, do we teach our kids to listen to God’s prompting, no matter where it might lead them?

That’s a scary thing to teach because God calls people to do some pretty crazy things more often than not. It’s kind of like the parent who keeps the house sterile so their toddlers won’t encounter any germs on the floor. It sounds right, but in the end, their immune systems may not be as robust as if they had been exposed to a wilder environment.

For example, my siblings were disgusted by what we perceived as decadence among Christians — fancy cars, overcooled homes, the newest appliances… The world we had come from lived so much more simply, and the commonplace extravagance bothered us. We had to learn to forgive and be more understanding of our brothers and sisters in Christ and appreciate the freedom we all have to make decisions.

The quote above sounds a lot like culture shock to me, and I’d have to know more particulars about the situation before I would decide whether it was completely justified: “To my horror, the food and ‘fellowship’ frequently cost more than the money they had just given to missions.” For example, the speaker might come from a place where a beans & rice meal would be considered sufficient for a church meal. In our culture, serving such a simple meal would be unthinkably rude.

Some churches provided housing and meals (whether hotel or with members), took us sightseeing, loaned us transportation, took us shopping, and gave us other practical considerations. What I most appreciated was that they gave us TIME and showed us respect and interest. We were invited to talk about our work and show slides to congregations and small groups. It was especially heartwarming to realize from the intelligent questions and comments that people had read the newsletters and kept up to some extent with the work abroad. (So check on current events in missionary’s host country or re-read the missionary’s newsletters to prepare for their arrival.)

It can be uncomfortable to feel like a culturally out-of-step outsider in a new situation or among people who aren’t well-known. I and my siblings deeply appreciated the individuals who would wander up after class or church or during a potluck to draw us out some more about the work or to get our take on American culture, politics, movies, etc.

Money is always appreciated and helpful in any amount, of course, but missionary families depend on consistent giving aside from the kind of freewill offering that you describe. They depend even more on prayer support, and to have the work and family prayed for in their presence is a tremendous blessing.

In sum: learn, listen, give, and pray.