Missionary Kids (MKs)

MK.

If you're not one, those initials probably mean nothing or little more than that. But if you're one of the privileged few to have been born into a missionary family, they are a badge of honor.


I was an MK before I was a missionary. I'm still an MK; my father still actively serves as a missionary.

MKs are a different breed; they kind of stick out like sore thumbs. Most of them love living on the mission field – especially if their parents have done a good job of instilling in them (by their words and by the example of their attitudes) what a privilege it is to serve God in this capacity. A lot of them have an incredible sense of humor (it comes with the territory), but it can often be difficult to understand them.

If they seem standoffish sometimes, they're not, really – it's just a little harder for them to make deep friendships. When you are in a church one night, or a weekend at most, then you move down the road or across the state to another church – over and over until your "deputation" tour is finished and you leave once again for home (and "home" is what their country of residence really is to them, though they love their home country), deep and long-lasting friendships don't happen readily. MKs are somewhat loners because they have to be.

They often sound funny...other languages have a way of tingeing our speech, while we are blissfully unaware of it and often impotent to correct it.

Then, there's culture. MKs who have been overseas for two or more years – or were born overseas – are neither fully "American" (or whatever their nationality is) nor fully of the culture of the nation in which they reside. They fall somewhere in between, a sort of hybrid – something that has become known as "Third-Culture Kids." A revealing book has been written about it: Third Culture Kids (David C. Pollock, Ruth E. Van Reken).

This can make it hard for an adult MK to feel truly comfortable and "at home" anywhere. At any age. Patriotism on the one hand...love of "home" on the other hand...and a constant, overarching feeling of rootlessness. This can make choosing a mate difficult, and require understanding in marriage.

But you know...

Most MKs wouldn't trade being an MK for anything in this world. They see things that others never get to; they go places most will never see; they know joys that to most are incomprehensible.

Unlike most Americans, MKs usually speak two or more languages – fluently. That's a big plus in the world of business and employment - not to mention the Kingdom of God. They understand what it is like to not fit in in another country – again, a huge advantage when reaching the lost among immigrant populations. 

And they know the joy of having church in a building with a dirt floor and no windows, but with the power of God hovering like a cloud, and precious, spiritually hungry people yielding themselves to the Spirit of the Almighty as they seek and worship Him.

There's really nothing like it in the world. 

It's no wonder that a large number of MKs graduate to "M" –– serving God all or much of their lives as missionaries in their own right. It's not a choice, of course – it's a calling...but MKs are often more sensitive to that urgently calling Voice, and much more ready to respond.

They know there's a price to pay...but they also know that the rewards are huge, the satisfaction is measureless, the joy is undescribable.

Parents struggling with a Call, don't be afraid to take your kids to a mission field. Don't deprive them of the greatest privilege in the world! Go confidently - and enjoy it as much as they will. Because they will – if you will.

Here's to you, Missionary Kids...this graduate's hat is off to you.