he lack of comforts, and the roughness of the life that
make the missionary cringe and falter. It is something far less
romantic and far more real. It is something that will hit you right
down where you live. The missionary has to give up having his own way.
He has to give up having any rights. He has, in the words of Jesus, to
"deny himself." He just has to give up _himself_.

Paul knew all about this. If you do not believe it, look at I
Corinthians 9. "Have we no right to eat and to drink?" he asks. "Have
we not a right to forbear working?... Nevertheless," he goes on, "we
did not use this right.... Though I was free from all men, I brought
myself under bondage to all, that I might gain the more" (vv. 4, 6,
12, 19).

Paul, as a missionary, willingly gave up his rights for the sake of
the Gospel. Are we ready to do the same?

"But," someone will ask, "why should this be especially true for the
_missionary_? What rights must be given up on the mission field that a
consecrated Christian at home would not have to give up?"

The following chapters picture some of them.

CHAPTER 2

_The Right to What I Consider a Normal Standard of Living_

_"Have we no right to eat and to drink?"_--I Corinthians 9:4

The white-haired mission secretary looked at me quizzically. "Well,"
he said, "it's all in your point of view. We find that these days in
the tropics people may look upon the missionary's American
refrigerator as a normal and necessary thing; but the cheap print
curtains hanging at his windows may be to them unjustifiable
extravagance!"

* * * * *

My mind goes back to a simple missionary home in China, with a cheap
rug on the painted boards of the living-room floor. I can see country
women carefully skirting that rug, trying to get to the chairs
indicated for them without stepping on it. Rugs, to them, belonged on
beds, not on floors, and they would no more think of walking on my rug
than you would on my best blanket! I think of our dining table set for
a meal, and visitors examining with amazement the silver implements
instead of bamboo chopsticks; and white cloth instead of a bare table.
I think of having overheard our cook say proudly to a chance comer,
"Oh, of course they have lots of money! Why, they always eat white
bread; and they have meat every day, nearly; and as for sugar--why,
you just can't imagine the amount of sugar they use!"

* * *