There is no routine, no blueprint really, no specific “guidelines” for and in my missionary-life.

David’s face was etched with hints of the thirty one years on the mission field but he carried it with such grace I marveled at how much he still resembled the youthful photographs I had discovered back in our home office in Illinois tucked away in an old shoebox with a note that simply read—remember.

It’s Friday night, March 8th and I’m tucked away in my small boat cabin, shared with two other ministry partners who are hard at work in the sweltering heat of the Bolivia Amazon Tributaries.

There is one fan blowing down on me, and I am in deep gratitude for the air circulating around me

This fan will only last until 10pm when the boat generator shuts down and all goes silent and still. At that moment I’ll  let out a complaint in the form of a childish groan.

Nothing could have prepared me for

My husband Troy and I were struck speechless on the drive home from Helmar that night. What we had experienced was so tender. That church had embraced us as if we were their own. They listened to our story. They laughed with us, encouraged, asked good questions and in the end one farmer in the congregation took off his hat and

When people hear about the work I do they imagine that I’m carrying heavy stories of trauma and hearing a lot of pain.  But actually I rarely have deep conversations with the kids. And except for bits and pieces I don’t hear the details of their trauma Instead the

Can you remember the first time you got on a plane? the sensation of being in the air? Knowing that you are safe, but the adrenaline and nerves of knowing that you are flying! I remember the first time I got on a plane, it was so exciting but at the same time I was very scared. I suppose that

And there is still much to do. Just yesterday, here in Tuna, while recording for the Birifor language, the pastors were struggling while we recorded the Old Testament Bible stories, but were breezing through the New Testament stories. They explained to us that they have New Testament in Birifor already, but the Old Testament had not yet been translated, so they had to

The following is written by a CCWM Ministry Leader whom we will call Jen. Her identity and country of service is hidden in order to protect her family. They are church planters in a closed to the Gospel nation.

Consequently, I must count on His guidance, His protection, provisions, and His very real comfort in loneliness and difficulties. It’s super-natural...And many times, I’m not even aware of that any more…
Until I share stories with you, supporters and donors; the faithful who stay behind with the “luggage” of the Lord’s ‘frontline soldiers’… and who share in the blessing!

Shanna took a gentle breath in, a small sigh. “Yes…it’s true. All of that is true, and I would have little argument against that one except…

How would I filter a candidate who was telling me, he had felt called to be a “preacher” just a few days after he became a Christian? Would I smile patiently, understanding his new found passion, wondering how long it would last? Would I advise him to take a few years to learn the Word of God before he applied again? 

Probably.

We are still working out the details, but we are thinking the wedding will be sometime between late summer and early fall. In some ways, it feels like we are starting our relationship from scratch as we have both grown and changed much in the past four years. And yet,

“What a gift it is to be a reflection of the light of Jesus and get to walk into these dark places knowing that where the light enters, the darkness must flee.”

Are our overseas workers safe?" Is an oft-asked question. Worker safety is of prime importance. Yet if safety is the primary issue for families, churches, and agencies, then there is only one thing to do…..

No really. It’s true. Test it out, ask some of your missionary friends if that is something they hear too, because they will likely confirm it. It’s a thing. People don’t

And this is where I begin to get nervous. I can feel myself holding my breath. I’ve been working under Dan’s leadership long enough to know what question will be coming next…. and sadly this is where the vetting process all too often ends for us.

“So, tell me,” Dan leans in

“We’re Getting Married!” These three words should bring joy. However, as a missions mobilizer, these are the three words that have killed the mission more times than I care to acknowledge. The announcement is usually followed up by, “We are planning to go to the mission field together one day.” I wish that were true. I really do. But I’ve been at this for long enough to know…

Here I am Lord,... send my sister. That comment would be funny if it did not ring so true.

This lie assumes that to stay, guarantees something it does not. Who is to say what may have become of my children, my family, had we chosen to not obey? It is audacious of me to have thought disobedience would have guaranteed a ‘good life’.

I’m certain the pastor meant well, but it didn’t make it less awkward. My husband Troy and I were sitting in the congregation feeling our cheeks burn hot with embarrassment as the pastor preached on