What is a missionary?

Honestly, I have no idea. I used to think missionaries were people who gave up every material luxury in their lives to move halfway across the world (usually to a Third World country) to preach the gospel and bring people to Jesus while living amongst them and showering once a week, eating bugs, pooping in a hole in the ground, and wearing only holey jeans and t-shirts with Christian quotes on them.

Okay, that was a bit exaggerated, but you know what I mean.

We all have this concept of missionaries - that they must live in poverty and suffer like the indigenous people they're trying to reach out to, and that they must go out everyday and tell others about Jesus in such a fervent manner that everyone they talk to will accept Jesus in their hearts immediately.

But actually, I've come to realize that being a missionary is so much more than that. It's hard to comprehend, but not all missionaries go out and preach the gospel. 

Some people are administrators - they help make sure everything in the organization is running smoothly; some people are cooks - without them, missionaries would be eating bread and peanut butter everyday; some people are in charge of IT stuff - they ensure the computers that the organization possesses actually work; some people are writers or designers - they update the organization's website and newsletters so that support and prayer keeps flowing in; and yes, some people are evangelists - they go out and talk to strangers, give them tracts, and lead them to Christ.

It's hard to wrap my mind around that, especially since I've had the misconception that all missionaries are evangelists for the longest time. But I guess all these different types of people and jobs are necessary to keep mission organizations going and help missionaries, if not they would probably go crazy trying to handle all the administrative work and ministry and family and still find time to cook a decent meal for themselves.

So... I guess a missionary is someone who loves Jesus and serves Him with all his or her heart, regardless of the type of ministry work or the location. What matters is the faith and the humility in serving.