Send Me! Your Journal to the Nations
charting the course
Evaluating Your Readiness: From a Real Case Study
Bill Taylor
Mark and Mary, Karl and Susan are my friends. They are two married couples - four young adults. Four cross-cultural servants in difficult contexts within the 10/40 Window. How did they get there?
Ultimately, it was the sovereign seeking and sending God who thrust them into their high-risk, long-term ministries. But this Savior also used university campus ministries to challenge and disciple them, formal and non-formal college studies, graduate school and seminary. In the process, each of these Christians came to that profound conviction - some call this “the call” - that the Lord of the universe wanted them in missions. Mark became an engineer, Mary a teacher, Karl an archaeologist, and Susan a medical technologist. Mark spent a few years in student ministry to gain maturity and experience. Mary discipled younger women. Karl studied three years in seminary while his wife worked, and then he worked in order for Susan to have an intensive year of biblical preparation prior to cross-cultural service. The two couples have had significant experience in local church ministry, then were sent by these committed and loving churches, and have been sustained by God through tough times.
Mark and Mary have completed two intensive years of nonstop language study in Asia, have welcomed their second child, and have made a major move with their larger team to their target people group. Karl and Susan have more years under their belt - and more ministry scars and sicknesses, to boot! Following language study, they began the long process of building trust relationships, and building their family. Their three children were all born in their country of service.
My four friends have been well trained, at least as much as is possible when you don’t know the future. I believe they were effectively equipped. Were they efficiently equipped? That’s harder to say; “efficient” is difficult to measure.
Mark and Mary will directly apply their training and disciplines to bivocational ministry. Karl has found that his archaeological skills serve as a means to gain credibility and permission to travel. Amazing doors have opened to him, but he has realized that a full-time archaeology career is not easy. Susan’s professional skills, for now, are being applied to the task of raising a growing family.
1. In what way is your own story similar to or different from the account of these two couples?
2. What do you pick up from them about their long-term commitment to cross-cultural ministry?
3. What insights for your training and preparation emerge from their journey?
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Charting the Course
Excerpt from Send Me! Your Journey to the Nations Copyright 1999, World Evangelical Alliance, all rights reserved, reprinted by permission. The entire Send Me! workbook may be purchased online at www.wearesources.org.
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