In the summer of 2002, I went to New Delhi, India, to a visit to a missionary sent by our church. With me on the trip was not any short-term mission teams but my own son. He had just completed Form 5 then. I very much hoped he would know more about mission and, someday, maybe he would take part in it. So, I invited him for the trip, and he gladly accepted. When we landed in New Delhi, we felt as if we had entered an oven the moment the cabin doors opened. The local temperature was as high as 45°C. We later also came to know about the poor hygiene conditions, the economic difficulties, and the rampant spiritual powers there. We understood that missionaries paid a heavy price to live there. One day, my son earnestly asked the missionary what preparations one would need before coming to India for mission. I was suddenly a little anxious: If my son were to take part in mission, it was not a must for him to come to India for it was way too difficult here! I was also shocked by my own thought. I had been encouraging my son to care for mission, but then I was afraid that he would really go on mission.

Christian parents may face a dilemma when they know that their children commit themselves to serving as lay missionaries and offer one to two years or even a longer period to support missionaries on the field. But surely, they would, at the same time, more thoroughly understand the great love by which the Heavenly Father sent His beloved Son to the world! The fact is, God’s call for our children is also His call for us. He calls us to pay the price and, through our support for our children to go to the mission field, to take part in mission. Would the Heavenly Father not know that the parent-child relationship would be hindered by the child’s leaving? Would He not know that parents would lose certain supplies or support in the absence of the child? If the Lord calls the child to go, would parents not also need to learn to obey and trust in the Lord who sends? Both the child and the parents will surely know and experience God through obeying and following the Lord.

Of course, when their children are willing to commit to mission work, parents will still need to help them discern the guidance of God. They also need to help them examine their inner motives. Are they honestly committing to mission, or are they doing it for personal glory? Are they offering themselves, or are they asserting themselves in roaming the world? Have they clearly considered the price to pay? Do they have the confirmation of pastors? If parents can entrust the Lord with their worries about their children’s going, and if they can respond to and obey the Lord’s calling for them, they will certainly be able to help their children discern the guidance of the Lord better. They will also be able to better respect and trust their children’s desire to serve the Lord.

Many young believers commit to serving as missionaries because their parents had been moved by God in the past and had proactively expressed to God that they were willing to offer their children for mission if it is His will. Hannah offered her son Samuel and was accepted by God. God later moved Samuel to serve Him, and he became a blessing to the whole nation. Although God has His own will for each individual and may not act according to the desire of parents, He will still be pleased when parents take the initiative to offer their children. He will bless. After offering their children, parents need to learn to wait on God to work. There is no need to urge their children to get underway. They only need to express that if their children have truly received the calling from God, they will no doubt support them. That will be an important encouragement for the children in following the Lord.