Living faithful, fruitful and fulfilled on the mission field
“Go away for a retreat? I couldn’t. There was so much to do. We were growing fast. Many new believers called every day. I was rapidly training leaders and yet never finished my work before falling into bed at night exhausted.” Busy leaders often fail …
The desires and needs of husbands and wives are often quite different. Learning to value one another’s marriage desires is necessary for maintaining a healthy marriage. Doing a marriage desires exercise can help.
It’s been said that the only constant in the life of a missionary is constant change. Transition. Probably true for most people, not only missionaries though we do have a higher degree of change to deal with. It begs the question – how do we approach our continual transitions with grace? We need to look for the hidden treasures of our transition seasons.
When we have been disappointed, it is not easy to let ourselves risk again. So often, our past experiences dictate our willingness to hope for something different in the New Year. Being “realistic” leaves God out of the picture. It puts the God of the impossible on the shelf, the God who loves you and is able to do what you can not do. Take a risk and hope again.
“Suck it up!” My basketball coach used to tell me that when I was acting tired during our practice drills. “No pain, no gain!” In many ways, we are taught to ignore pain and push through it. I’m not saying there isn’t a place for …
Have you ever lost your temper? Gotten upset with fellow team members? Differences in personality, culture, and spiritual gifting can drive us apart. Or, these differences can make us strong and effective as a missionary team. My husband and I are extreme opposites in many …
Before I went into missions I had a grand desire to do something meaningful with my life. I think most of us long for something like that. Our search for meaning and purpose can leave us feeling disappointed with God or ourselves. Disappointment in how …
Though I was born in Nigeria, my passport says I am an American. I love my country. But I have never felt like a “real” American. Preparing for a trip back to the USA, someone asked me, “Are you going home next week?” That is …
Paul Akin, of the Gospel Coalition, writes this. “The most common reason missionaries go home isn’t due to lack of money, illness, terrorism, homesickness, or even a lack of fruit or response to the gospel. Regretfully, the number one reason is a conflict with other …
I was reading through an old journal as I worked on a book I hope to publish one day. I came across this poem. It was written when we were trying to purchase land in India for a widow’s home. Things had been tough. The …