Delinquency

     When you're on a mission, the first thing you have to do is to forget everything you've learned from the place where you received instructions for before leaving.  The rules outlined in a handbook are simply just "guidelines" to the missionaries.  It'll make life extremely difficult if you want to follow the rules-- you'll be labeled as a "goody-do-er," "not fun," "tattle-tale," and just negative labels-- it makes missionary work pretty hard.

     For the past year or so, it was like that-- constantly being picked on for being too upright about standards.  It got worse being around the missionaries who have been called English-speaking*-- no discipline and rampant rowdiness all over the place.  It was like walking midst middle-schoolers.  Now I understand that they haven't quite got the fact that the rules are in place for precautionary rather than for restrictive purposes; but to blatantly rebel against it was just unacceptable!  These people don't act like missionaries, period.

     Lock me up in a looney bin-- coat me with a strait jacket, too.  I've been going insane with so much hypocrisy going on.  Dying.  Decaying.  My mental state was deteriorating frighteningly fast.

     To those of you at work or even here in the mission field, it's stressful dealing with non-compliant people-- they don't follow the standards set in place.  Even worse, they think they're quite the chivalrous bunch-- they can't find fault in themselves, finding it for others!  Gossips spread fast, too.  So let me give you some pointers that'll help with such a seemingly hopeless situation:

You might be a perfectionist.

     I learned that the hard way-- this makes life unnecessarily difficult to those who want to do things by the books.  Although it says, many times, that perfection is to be sought for, perfectionism is to be avoided.  That comes from progressing yourself while looking back at others behind you in scorn.  

     "<sigh> I guess I'll have to clean up their mess."

     "Could you be any more stupid?"

     "Grow up!"

     "Why would you do that?"

     Let reality come back to you-- you're dealing with people who can make their own decisions.  This is something that isn't under anyone's control-- not even God.  Sure, God knows what his children will do long before they themselves, but He has no control over it.  One cannot dictate how another person should live his or her life-- coercion was never a principle preached by any religionist and moralist in good standing with society.

     Paul says that "his strength is made perfect in weakness" as he talks about the Atonement Jesus made for us (2 Corinthians 12:9).  We have to humble ourselves-- know that "there is so much good in the worst of us and so much bad in the best of us, that it hardly becomes any of us to talk about the rest of us."

     As soon as you know this, feel free to sulk around a little bit, swallow some pride, and start reaching out-- lovingly.  These people may be below us when it comes to maturity or understanding, but the things will work out.  The path to perfection isn't a solo road-- it's a group effort!  Remember: look back and reach out.  These kids-- these people-- won't understand why certain principles have to be followed, but through kind and loving example, they can be made right-- an invitation to do good.  Waiting for them to change without doing anything on your part will only make life more miserable.

The Donkey and the Fence (ANECDOTE)

     There lived a heard of donkeys, living on a very, very large ranch.  They all got along with each other very well, grazing on the nice, green pasture in which they were roaming.  Their ranchers, who would supervise where they were to go, were nice fellows-- very caring and very responsible as they would take care of the donkeys.

     Every now and then, some of the donkeys in the ranch were taken out by these ranchers so they would give rides to visiting tourists.  As the donkeys were more or less docile in their countenances, this wasn't a big problem with extremely few incidents of bucking or kicking.  It was a good life for these donkeys.  The work they had to do wasn't at all difficult and they were very well taken care of-- plenty of food, space, and time.

     However, beyond the fences in which they were surrounded by, there lied an unknown world to these donkeys; it wasn't anything like the trails they took their tourists.  The donkeys had no idea what was out past those, bright, white picket fences.  With that in mind, some of the donkeys got very curious.

     "Hey, what do think might be out there?" a donkey asked another donkey.

     "Beats me, Paula, but I bet Josh over there knows!"

     These two donkeys went to Josh-- he was notorious for the injuries caused to the humans-- he was the most extreme case of bucking and kicking the ranch has ever seen.  He would attempt running away many times, only to be found and returned back to where he lived.  He was seldom taken out of the ranch for fear of hurting more people and running away.

     "Hey Josh, have you ever been past the fence before?" Paula asked.

     "Oh plenty," Josh bluffed.  "The trick is, you have to kick off five of the tourists riding on you-- then you'll get strong enough legs to jump the fence over and see it for yourself!"

     "Won't the ranchers see me?"

     "Don't worry about that!  Your legs'll be so strong, they won't even know you leapt the fence!"

     Intrigued, these donkeys were extremely interested in the fact that there was a world out there and there was means to get there!  A rather reasonable task, these donkeys began to talk amongst themselves and with the other donkeys in the ranch-- many thought it was amusing at first.  Time passed, though, and many of the donkeys began feeling unsatisfied of their living conditions, even though they were treated extremely well and with care.  The donkeys looked to Josh, who would frequently run away and thought "maybe he isn't all that crazy."

     Through the months, these donkeys have begun to buck and kick a rather large amount of people as they rode the tourists.  Several deaths amounted, but these donkeys hadn't given much care anymore.  They now were set on wanting out.  Perhaps there lied freedom to do whatever they could-- or even paradise.  As each had accomplished what was told of them, the donkeys began to leap over the fence.  Surprising enough, each donkey that had kicked and injured and killed the five or more tourists had leapt that fence with very little difficulty.  In single file, each would see what the other side had beheld.  Little did these donkeys knew that over that fence was a very steep cliff.