Why Missinaries Fail Part 14

Folks, I've seen this here in Mexico, and I've seen it in the US. If you are a good musician, you can get away with murder. I have seen talented musicians drive people out of the church, drive off rival musicians, openly rebel, and use musical ability as a means of gaining political power within the church. It is amazing how far a musician can advance in Christian work without God. That doesn't mean that there aren't very many dedicated Christians who sacrifice their time and effort in order to serve the Lord through music. But it does mean that an immature Christian can wind up on the mission field, and without enough people to listen to his music, find himself a failure.

Most Christian musicians really do love God. But they hear enough praise and gratitude that they sometimes forget that it takes more than musical ability to succeed as a missionary.

Why Missionaries Fail Part 13

Jim and his wife arrived here in the Gringo Zone, all excited about being real live missionaries who were receiving financial support from churches in the US. A good musician, Jim could keep the Mexican kids entertained with hymns they did not understand, while his wife failed miserably as an orphanage worker. They wound up at the local Baptist church, where Jim became song leader. In his first service, he felt "led of the Spirit" to go off into goofy music that caused a church split and he was fired after his first week.

Heading to the local Assemblies of God church, the two of them blamed their failure on the Baptists, caused conflict there, and returned to the US.

They failed in their original ministry, caused problems in two churches, and returned to the US--all within six months. But Jim sure was a good musician.