Getting involved in missions

Any cross-cultural organization will ask you, “How are you involved in cross-cultural work?”

God’s at work even though I’ve been asleep.

On the second date, I gave her six books on cross-cultural work and six books on marriage. I was not backward.

I would read avidly missionary biographies, but I would also read stories of people coming to faith from a majority background and be really excited about that. That seemed to be resonating with my heart.

When you get to the Middle East, you fall in love with the Middle East. They are so beautiful. Life is so chaotic. Nothing happens as you think it should happen, but people are so hospitable and loving. It’s so eager for you to learn Arabic that we never made it beyond the Middle East.

Learning Language

Our organization has always said that we would like you to spend two years on solid language learning.

I would elicit language material from all the friends I met on the street. I would have a dice and I would have six questions. I would say roll the dice, they would roll the dice, and I would say, “Ah, question three!” Then I would ask the question, and that would open up so much vocabulary I their answer.

We had the whole interrogation process through an interpreter, which really takes the heat off of us.

Figuring out kids’ education

A car backed onto my foot, and I beat it off. And there was my foot with a tire mark on my shoe. And I said to God, “Why did you let that happen?” And God said, “When do you push on someone’s foot?” And I knew God wanted me to keep listening.

We worked with our mission organization to see how our kids were coping. We came to the conclusion that they would be much better off in the missionary kids school, specifically the TCK school in Europe.

Both of our kids had the last four years of their schooling in the TCK school in Europe. Which was top drawer. All the teachers were workers. They really celebrated the kids’ home countries and the countries that they had lived in before.

Our children had to learn the dominant accent they learned at TCK school so they could fit in accent wise when they went back to our home country.

Changes over the years

Amongst workers, there was a good sense of cooperation. A limited number of workers in a country would mean that we would get together and pray. We still do that today, that’s great. That’s something we haven’t lost.

There has been a positive emphasis on small-group Bible discovery.

It would break your heart back when people would learn the language and then go, “Yeah, this isn’t for me.” And you would think, oh, but you’re so gifted, why don’t you stick around?”

In the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s, we would rejoice because there was a believer in this town or a believer in that town. And now we have small groups of believers from a majority background studying the Bible together and growing together. And God has been doing an amazing thing.

Suffering for Christ

The teaching is on how to suffer. How to stand up for your faith in the midst of persecution.

The persecuted church is a prophetic voice to the church in the West, saying, “Wake up, guys. You’re not there just to serve yourself. It’s not happy clappy, let’s get a warm feeling. It’s to live for Jesus, whatever the cost.

The incidents of suffering are so much more now.

The challenge for the churches is to be a family to people who come out and say, “I want to follow Jesus, I want to live for Jesus.”

Coming back to the field as a single

My wife died three years ago of cancer. I haven’t come as part of a family; I’m in this odd category for local friends. They don’t quite know where to put me.

I rarely get invited into a Muslim’s home because I’m a risk.

I wanted to show love in that context, to the whole family. So I brought some handmade soap. And said to him, “This is for your wife.” And then when I went back for my daughter‘s wedding, she sent some cosmetics back with me for my daughter. So there was a connection.

MBBs and Money

We have thousands of people in the debtor’s prison here. So how can I care for my friend who’s struggling with death without creating dependency?

I give to somebody, who gives to someone, who gives to him anonymously.

“We don’t actually give loans, but this is how much money we can give you. It’s a gift.” And it’s always less than what they ask for. “It’s a gift and we don’t want you to return it to us.”

We stressed that it’s God’s money, it’s not our money.

Giving anonymously is trying to protect both of us from dependency.

As a team, we struggle with how to help these families, because their situations are critical financially.

I’m always looking for ways to give anonymously.

A friend, an experienced cross-cultural worker, said to me, “I decided that if my heart grows hard, it’s time for me to come home.”

Protecting yourself from cynicism

The spirit of God in you brings to mind when you become cynical. When I’m starting to talk, “Oh, this place is dusty and dirty,” and that’s the framework through which I see this place. Then I need to release it before God.

I’m here because it’s dusty and dirty.

It’s a small step towards saying ‘I love you.’ I was there for you in a difficult situation.

Processing the death of a spouse

The specialist said, “We have bad news for you, it’s stage four lung cancer.”

The hardest part is waiting. You wait for a diagnosis, and then you wait for a treatment regimen. These can be weights of months.

My wife adopted a mantra of always being thankful and always asking, What can I be thankful for today?

She was so easy to care for because she was always grateful and said ‘thank you’ frequently.

Before she died, she said to me, “I never thought you could care for me as you have.”

You dive into God because that’s all you have to dive into.

I’m not convincingly single for the rest of my days, but I want to be happy in Jesus for the stage of life.

There are times that I look at her photo and I say, “Why God, why?

Moving back to the field at 70

The team was praying, “Lord, send men”. One and seven cross-cultural workers as a man.

Men aren’t dealing with their stuff, like their addictions, like alcohol and porn.

We all wrestle with his issues, but we need to establish accountability and transparency. We need to bring those things to Jesus and have him deal with our inner turmoil.

Go to the hard place and you’ll find some workers. Go to the most challenging places, and you’ll find a group of women.

I had a sense that I was doing the same thing again, and again, and again. How am I growing? How am I gonna keep growing if I keep doing the same things over and over?

I can’t be praying for workers if I’m not willing to go myself.

I didn’t know how God was going to use me, but I wanted to be obedient and step forward, and be that place where he can use me.

God is calling locals to stay, and we need to be staying beside them.

I prayed for a ground-floor flat with a garden, but I got a top-floor flat with a view.

Some people will never be able to go, but they can give.

I have more than 100 people praying for me on every turn and twist.

God calls, and he equips. He doesn’t call you to something and then just leave you there.