Robert Morrison

This year we celebrate the 200th anniversary of Robert Morrison coming to China as a missionary. Little as we know in order to come to China, he had to work for the East India Company as a translator, most likely also involved in the opium trading business. (And he must have known about the harmful effect of opium then, see here.)

I did not know him, so I don't know what he was thinking then, so the following is just my own speculations.

If it were you, what would you do? Spread the "Gospel" (i.e. assuming it's just concerned about going to heaven) and ignore the effect on Chinese people's body (because that is the only way to be in China)? Justify my works by the good things I did? Pray and try to find another way, if there was no other way, just wait?

I think I can understand why he did it, but was there another way? God's way? hmm... no one knows.

Let me tell you a story of a colleague of mine. (Kinda related) Some of you may have heard about it on the news, some of my co-workers are fighting for a change of our payscale (to a fairer system) recently. She was also involved in the fight herself. She spent a lot of time doing work for the union. And one day, she was very tired and she made a very big mistake at work.

Suddenly she realised God did NOT want her to work on this. He did NOT call her to fight for this. She ignored what was important to work for something that was not that important. God could take her job away anytime He wanted, and what she cared about most.

She let go of her work for the union.

Sometimes, the cause can be noble, the work can be worthwhile, but does God really want us to be the one doing THAT? Is God calling us to do something else?