We shared at a bible study group a few nights ago. It was (as usual) a joy to speak to others about our work. We have come to enjoy speaking with groups from a generation or so older than us. So often we are divided up by our age or life stage. I truly enjoy listening to their conversations as they are different then what 30-somethings are talking about. I am blessed to see their faithfulness to the Lord and to hear about what challenges they are facing.
During the course of our conversation someone mentioned how they really began to understand our work. The word that came to his mind was ‘unglamorous.’ That is such an apt description. We often feel the pressure to tell a story, give a report, give people something to engage with. But in reality the day to day work is very unglamorous. Homeschooling with a 7 & 5 year old with a 2 year old running around; doing a session at a local church but only 5 people show up; hearing the struggles of a national worker but not really knowing how to help; helping a local staff member learn how to step into maturity for the 50th time, etc, etc.
Yes, we are excited about recent developments and what the future may hold for our work. But we know we are going back to a slow and arduous work. One of my favorite quotes is by a long time worker in India in the 1800s. When asked about his work he said, “I can plod!” That is another way of saying, “It isn’t glamorous, but it’s what I’ve been called to.” We may not be the most skilled, diligent, intelligent, or faithful, and the work may be unglamorous, but we can plod!
For the past several years the task of all of our written communication has fallen to B. He’s asked me to write a post for the blog and I responded that I’ll try to get to it. The inevitable reality is that the pressing needs of family (dinner, potty training accidents, running out of some staple food…) always take my time and brain capacity. However, somehow, miraculously at this moment the dishes are washed, children are in bed, and I have a moment to try to share a bit of the journey God has had me on lately. We returned to our Asian home just over a year ago. One of the interesting things of our Home Assignment in 2016 and the return to the field in 2017 is that B and I dealt with a minimal amount of culture shock going either way. (It was quite a different story for our kids, but that’s for another time.) The excitement of living overseas has long lost its glamor and we knew exactly what we were returning to as we returned to our city. We also had seen that some of our bigges...
Comments