Wounded Christian Warriors
Sometimes we forget how "normal" sorrows and pains affect those who are on the front lines of gospel work
I received a message from Tom Wolf this week about a survey trip he and Nancy were completing in South Asia. It was a great trip, but as it ended, Tom received word that his father was near death. He changed his plans and flew back to the States, but not in time--his father passed while he was on the way. A memorial service will be held, but not until the family can gather.
Right now, the family gathering may be impacted by Wade and Tara McComas's visa situation--the residency permits still needed before they can leave South Africa where they are doing church planting have not come, and they don't know when they will come. They cannot leave the country without them.
Justin and Jenna Dodson recently returned to France after a trip back to North America where Jenna's father was dying. Justin called after he passed and we talked funerals instead of developments in the work in Strasbourg. But the work continues and they have returned, even as the grief is fresh.
In another city in France, Josh and Beth Paulick's labors in language school were interrupted at a critical time by news from home that required their attention and care as well. Such moments don't allow for just a quick visit across town when you are serving on another continent. Most of us don't have to learn another language quickly while also paying attention to vital needs of others.
In more "mundane" concerns, Jesse and Ashley Leightenheimer wrote from Lyon, France, of Asher's excitement but also apprehension (and theirs, too, I'm sure!) as he prepared to go on a 5 day school field trip--at age 7. That may be normal there, but I can imagine a lot of parents as well as kids who might be nervous about this. They are doing it while engaged in church planting work in a place where they are still learning the nuances of the culture.
And finally, also in France (!), the church plant in Caen is reeling under the weight of a murder/suicide in a refugee family that Betty and others had ministered to. The government's removal of this family from Caen and from the church's care contributed to the tragedy.
This is all in the last two weeks, family. We pray for our workers to have boldness to share the gospel. We ask God to give them wisdom in ministry. We rejoice in new opportunities and open doors, and we should.
But let's not forget that all the ups and downs of life, including the sicknesses, the sorrows, the deaths, the tragedies, the frustrations, the disappointments that are a part of every life on earth are also theirs--and they face them with the extra hurdles of distance, expense, cultural distances, scarce resources, and a lack of ability to respond quickly--or as quickly as they could if they weren't in the service of Jesus.
We know that Jesus does take care of them, but let's make sure we are lifting them up for the wounds that we often find hard to bear. They have to bear them, too, and that can make their service seem even harder at times.
I think about Paul's description of his ministry sufferings in 2 Corinthians. After he lists all the hardships he endured for the gospel, he says, "and besides this, there is the care for all the churches." He had ministry anxieties and they were real. But that list of hardships--long as it was--were the "non-spiritual" wounds he carried as well. He had the pains and cares of missions work, but in the midst of it he also dealt with angry people, tough circumstances, and shipwrecks!
I'm not complaining for our international workers (or even those close to home)--the fact is, God is glorified greatly by the efforts of his hurting servants who stay faithful. I only remind you (and myself) to be praying for the workers in their roundedness, that they will be sustained in the extra level of burden those moments may bring.
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