I have a love-hate relationship with Facebook, really all social media. I love that I don’t seem so far away when I can see what is happening with my friends and family. I get to see new babies and weddings, watch my nieces and nephews grow up, and laugh at daily happenings through status updates. I hear about engagements and deaths, new movies and restaurants. I see get-togethers, watch fall approaching and observe holiday preparations. And then it hits. I’m missing it. I’m missing my niece’s first soccer game, my sister’s new baby, my grandparents’ anniversary, my friend’s wedding. I’m missing birthdays, funerals, movies, coffee get-togethers, reunions, and holidays. And right before my eyes I see pictures of everything happening… without me. Pictures without my kids… without my husband… without me. We’re missing it. And it hurts. A lot.
Like any good missionary, I could give you a list of all the things that make missing it worth it. I can tell you about the friendships, the lives saved, the unique experiences, the depth of my relationship with Christ. And it’s all true. But every day I still see, tangibly in front of me, how much I’m missing. I’m not a super Christian who can keep an eternal perspective all the time. Missing it wears on the heart. It makes hard missionary days even harder. It makes me want to go “home”; to stop missing it.
But then, what if you prayed for a missionary every time you put a picture on Facebook? What would happen if every time I saw a picture of something I missed, I knew someone had prayed for me? Prayed for my eternal perspective, prayed for my children, prayed for safety, unity, peace, finances, acceptance, cultural sensitivity, purity, and contentment. Suddenly my perspective on missing it changes, because I’m being supported in something much greater than myself. And maybe missing it wouldn’t be so hard.
