Show or Tell?

Questions About Sharing God’s Love

“So your Mission preaches and teaches the Bible among First Nations … why don’t you do something to help them?”

It’s a question we’ve been asked, and it deserves an answer. But first there’s the need to clear up a wrong assumption that some may have …

… that First Nations people are especially needy, and that we missionaries have it all together. The reality is that we all are needy! It’s by God’s grace that any of us can offer help and hope to someone else.

Some of us may have escaped the brunt of it, but our world is rife with suffering and injustices.

All races have deep spiritual and social needs, and all struggle with many of the same issues that First Peoples struggle with, including family breakdown, abuse, human trafficking, crime, violence, poverty, addictions.

Change & Loss

Missionaries around the world serve among people in situations shaped by geography, history, and politics. Briefly, here is the context in which we serve …

From subsistence living, to supplying for the early fur trade, followed by the arrival of European settlers … these circumstances brought irreversible change to Canada’s Indigenous peoples within a few short years. Treaties resulted in a loss of land and independence for many. Injustices include treaties not honored, and racist attitudes. For many years government and church-run residential schools eroded First Nations families, language and culture – the effects still deeply felt.

While making gains in controlling their own affairs, Aboriginal people are still economically and socially at the bottom of statistical reports.

This is the situation in which Canada’s First Peoples find themselves – one they did not choose.

The Good in Helping

One of our missionaries tells of a certain extended family in their northern community. Every time their older sister performs an act of kindness, the rest will affectionately refer to her as “Mrs. McComb.” It’s a tribute to one of our late missionaries who offered them a needed safe and friendly place many years ago when they were young. They especially remember the cookies!

Honorary missionaries, Joe & Helen Pope, recently reconnected with a northern fellow whose badly-bleeding toe Helen had “sewed up” after he’d cut it swimming in the river near their place. Helen (a trained nurse) barely remembered the incident. But it is still clear in this man’s memory, and those who were with him that day … 40 years later.

These simple acts of kindness may not have seemed like much at the time, says Helen, but they obviously have made an impact.

James 2:15 says: “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?’ ”

The Bible clearly tells of God’s compassion for the suffering, the oppressed and poor – and His desire for His people to be His hands and feet in ministering to those in need.
In Canada, with universal health care, government programs and Treaty benefits, we may assume that needs are cared for in every situation. That’s not the case. Our missionaries find many opportunities to help with people’s multiple needs (see box below).

Helping or Not?

Recently our Tribal Trails TV ministry took a phone call from a viewer needing money and asking for prayer to get him out of his financial crisis. This particular caller admitted his predicament was caused by his wrong choices.

We feel bad for people like him who have suffered loss. Our missionaries, however, must wrestle with this question: will providing money (food, lodging, transportation) only enable further wrong choices and habits? When are we just rescuing? And when are we really helping? We have to be humble in our discernment – after all, if the need is because of a wrong choice, who of us has never made a wrong choice?

Culturally, First Nations people are generally generous, sharing with one another out of their abundance, and not so concerned about saving for the future. In this context, the way a missionary handles his money may appear stingy.

One of our missionaries tells, however, of being new in ministry and thinking that assisting people with cash loans would help build bridges of friendship. He found it was the opposite. Either the people would avoid him, feeling guilty for the debt they owed, or they would only come around when they needed more money.

There are other examples of our missionaries “helping” too much. One of our workers tells of, while visiting the Arctic, seeing a fellow struggling to move a heavy barrel of fuel up a hill. Rushing over to help him, uninvited, resulted in a barrier to ministry, not a bridge. The missionary’s Inuit friend later explained that, in their culture, his actions meant that the struggling man now “owed him” … not something he wanted.

The Unique Task of Missions

This article is about an issue that can divide Christians. There are those committed to “telling” the Gospel to people who do not know Christ and need hope for eternity. There are also those committed to “showing” God’s love to people. Often called “social justice,” the desire is to help a broken and hurting world.

Christian organizations have specific mandates – the reason for their existence. NCEM’s is stated in “About Us.” We trust that the remainder of this article helps explain it.

The unique task of missions is to establish a viable growing church movement among every tribe, tongue, people and nation – that Christ might be exalted in all the earth! Before Christ left earth He gave His Great Commission to His followers. We believe that establishing churches is central to that Great Commission and building God’s Kingdom among all nations.

The Best Way To Help

We believe a local biblical church is the best tool for evangelism and social justice. Organizations with social programs have a role, but we believe that help is best given and received through ongoing relationships that include extended families. First Nations people are highly relational. They also view things as interconnected, which means they appreciate interaction on all levels – not just physical and social, not just spiritual.

One of our missionaries tells of helping families arrange for housing, providing rides for medical treatments (the family had no vehicle), sitting through court appearances, sharing meals, providing groceries, and helping students with homework. Recently the missionary helped search for a runaway teenager, and spent time with a child who was talking of suicide. All of this was done in ongoing relationships with the families that includes Bible teaching, sharing and praying with them through their struggles and sorrows.

“Reciprocity” is also a main cultural value among First Nations. Helping in a relational context means receiving as well as giving. The same missionary has received food, clothing, cash and other gifts … restaurant meals, vehicle fuel, and more from First Nations friends. Social programs are less likely to provide opportunity for this level of human dignity.

Connecting Scripture To Life

Missionaries Tom & Donna Cnossen share their thoughts on “helping” this way:

“The best thing we can do is to connect the truths of Scripture to real life. True conversion affects body, soul and spirit. God can speak to each area of a human being.”

In their church-planting ministry at Maskwacis, Alberta, the Cnossens tell of a family who said they’d initially come to Fellowship meetings because of the free bread available each Sunday. But they’ve kept coming back because of the Bible teaching and because, along with others, they can “feel the love” in the church.

No society or individual has hope for this life and for eternity outside of the love of God shown through the perfect work of Christ. Real change in our world will come only as hearts are redeemed – the hearts of oppressors and the oppressed.

(from Northern Lights issue #527). Note: some of the locations and involvements of our missionaries may have changed since the original publishing of this article.