What do you admire most in a missionary? Perhaps courage comes to mind, the ability to face many unknown obstacles in a foreign land. Maybe you would mention trust in God, because most missionaries have concluded their work will fail without the aid of the Creator. Many would mention the incredible talent God’s ambassadors must have in interacting with people of other
cultures. The list is long.
Let me suggest an admirable trait that I have observed through the years in our own Megan Bills McKinzie.
A number of years ago two young girls spent entire days in and around my home developing a very valuable skill: their ability to imagine. Megan and my daughter, Jeannie Petty, when about ten years old, produced and filmed cooking shows, designed and modeled “retro” clothing apparel, were talk show hosts, celebrities, and glamour queens. I often had the honor of being interviewed by “famous people” as Megan and Jeannie let their imaginations run wild.
The cooking shows are some of my best memories of these girls. (I call them “shows” because everything was filmed and narrated on videotape, just like a TV episode.) All cooking ingredients were explained, the vocal accents were exaggerated, the costumes were outlandish, and no dish was too complicated or difficult. I may have even tasted a few of their masterpieces. “Cooking With Megan and Jeannie,” by using their creativity and imagination, was always exciting and interesting.
What fun that was! Every day was a fresh adventure, because two girls would dream, think, and act, usually in that order.
Team Arequipa will be blessed by Megan’s ability to dream and imagine, because, after all, God has placed his “treasure in earthen vessels” (2 Corinthians 4:7) to be carried to all nations. God surely uses the imagination and creativity of his servants. The message of the Good News of the Kingdom does not change, but the Team will need to exercise their imaginations in finding ways to deliver the message – and they are already doing just that. Megan, Greg, Larissa, and Kyle have been actively imagining the most culturally effective and appropriate ways to reach southern Peruvians. It will be an ongoing process.
May God bless these four saints with active imaginations and boundless creativity, all for God’s glory. And should there be a lull in their thinking, I suggest handing the video camera to Megan.
“So we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”