Going to Africa Makes You 17 Times More Holy

At least that's the prideful thought that has been trying to creep into my mind lately.

I'm going on a missions trip to Ethiopia, Africa this summer with my sister. You can read about it here.

Conclusion: It's super easy to get prideful about going on a missions trip. Especially to Africa.
I mean, everyone knows that if you really want to be legit about serving God, Africa is the place to go.

Surround yourself with hundreds of orphaned children, poor widows, and starving families and you are pretty much in the gold mine of missions. It doesn't get much more holy than that.

God is probably looking down on me with a single glistening tear in His eye, expressing the utter joy it brings Him to see my holiness level raise so substantially. Oh, Africa.

I'm pretty sure going to Africa is just a single step below being a nun or a monk. Don't you?

And you know what the best part is?
Being holy in a way that seems humble. Like this:
"Hey MaryBeth, do you think you'll be able to help with VBS this summer."
"Oh, I would really love to. But...I'm going to be in Africa."

"Hey MaryBeth, what week are you going to counsel at camp this summer?"
"Argh! I'm so sad that I won't be able to counsel at all this summer. But...I'm gonna be in Africa."

(Africa. You know? Totally out-Christianizing you while you hand out cookies at VBS and make bracelets out of string with kids at camp. I'll be holding the feeble hands of poor orphan children.)

So, the confession is that I know everything I just said is totally messed up. I know that going to Africa does not make me more holy than you. I know that your summer outreach program 10 minutes away is just as important and just as lovely in the eyes of God as my trip. I know that is it not about how far you travel or how many people you witness to or how poverty-stricken the area is in which you are serving. It's about your heart. And it's about letting God use you, wherever you are.

But, I feel like this is something a lot of short-term missionaries probably have to deal with at some point.
I don't want to glorify this trip and make it look like we're the perfect little missionaries with the perfect little blog about how godly we are.
I want to share with you for real about what I'm going through day by day.
And today....going to Africa is tempting me to feel 17 times more holy.
Maybe I needed to voice it to realize how absurd it sounds, how totally twisted the entire concept is.
It's something I'll be praying about and working on.
You see...God's gonna be teaching us so much through this trip, even 5 months before we get on a plane.