Dear Friends,
Life’s opportunities likely compete for your time. Family, neighbors, groups at church, volunteering, work, hobbies, travel. How do you determine what tasks or causes to accept? This has been a constant dilemma in adulthood for me. Especially how I use my digressionary time.
Over time God implanted and grew a desire in me to invest in people who don’t know Him and to make room for these opportunities. He eventually refined this desire to those who have least access to hearing about Jesus. Our family began reaching out to international students at nearby universities and “traveled” the world in our living room. Valentine’s Day discussions on love vs arranged marriages. Christmas Eve and Day with internationals joining our family celebration. Housing a Chinese family while their damaged roof was repaired. An Indian gal experiencing trauma with her roommates lived with us while she finished the semester. I was stretched while visiting a home learning to eat chicken foot. I didn’t want to embarrass my hostess in front of her generous neighbor bearing a good gift of plump feet—with the
toenails still attached. They laughed at my inadequate skills to eat common food.
Eventually a friend gave me a set of questions to ask yourself how you should be spending your time and efforts:
- What tasks are you uniquely gifted for?
- Where are others not stepping forward to fill the need?
- Will this task help the gospel move forward to reach those who have little or no exposure to the good news of Jesus?
As Ed and I got older, we began brainstorming how to skip “retirement” and move into “redeployment.” We used these questions and were led to join World Outreach’s International Theological Education Network (ITEN). One way we saw God work was through a trail blazing believer in Southeast Asia working with Far East Broadcasting Network. He created radio programs for a remote area with no exposure to Jesus. During extreme conflict in the 1970s, he fled for safety to the US where he continued this work. Broadcasted programs explained the Bible in their heart language. He called the people from this remote place to faith and taught them how to worship our majestic God of all gods. The Holy Spirit swept over the region and entire families came to faith followed by persecution. A registered denomination protectively embraced them. Their leadership was introduced to ITEN by a World Outreach worker which led to an invitation to train leaders in theological education and leadership development. Those we trained would go on to train others.
It’s amazing how the things Ed and I have experienced over our lives, involvement in the church, the study of scripture, our various jobs, and family life, equipped us for this task. Being “senior citizens” has opened doors. We marvel how God has put us in this time of serving as part of a series of others who have said, “Here I am. Send me.”
– Nan McCallum
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