PHILADELPHIA (BRN) – In May of this year, I was all ready to go on a mission trip to Central Africa, where I have personal connections with a missionary family there.
My plan was to help them with their English education program, and really get a feel for the culture by being there for over two months.
During the nine months leading up to my trip, I prepared by learning some language, making a conversational English lesson plan and praying for the people group I would primarily be working with. Everything was going well.
But when my last 48 hours in the United States rolled around, I got a message from the missionaries: their two young sons, Daniel and Isaiah (ages four and six), had pneumonia and the family needed to leave the country for emergency medical care.
Upon receiving the news, their support network flew into action. I witnessed their family mobilize hundreds of people to pray for the health of the boys. They sent emails, text messages, made phone calls, etc.
Within a day of receiving word of the boys’ illness, hundreds of people from many different states, churches and even denominations were interceding on behalf of little Daniel and Isaiah.
Unfortunately, the country in which the family was stationed does not have the best medical technology. At one point while receiving care in that country, Daniel, the four-year-old, was very close to needing emergency intubation and being put on a ventilator. Graciously, the Lord kept him from that.
Soon, the whole family flew to a nearby country with better medical care, and the boys were admitted into a children’s hospital. Within a few days of receiving quality care, Isaiah greatly improved and was discharged.
However, Daniel needed more intensive care. Over the next 10 days, doctors performed several different procedures to break up fluid in his lungs and help him improve. During that time, friends and family prayed and prayed for the Lord to heal Daniel as well as give opportunities for the Kingdom to advance through this nightmarish scenario.
The Lord answered the prayers for healing. Although he was still very weak, Daniel was able to be discharged after the 10-day period of procedures and treatment. It was concerning and scary to think it might take him months, if not years, for his lungs to recover, but in just two months following the pneumonia their family spent time hiking in the Alps.
The Lord completely healed Daniel’s lungs and he had no lasting damage. Isaiah recovered in even less time.
As for my mission trip, it never happened. When I received news of the emergency evacuation, I postponed my departure and had a tough week of questioning. Why wasn’t God allowing the boys to be healed quickly, and for me to go? Why would He allow my plans for the summer to be thwarted, when I so clearly wanted to serve Him?
A week after I heard news of the evacuation, I had a moment of realization. I was trying to serve God in the place and ministry that I wanted, rather than what He wanted.
Finally, I surrendered myself to serving Him how and where He wanted. That afternoon, my departure date was postponed again, and the missionaries decided I should look for another mission opportunity.
Full of excitement and confirmation of the Holy Spirit, I reached out to Nehemiah Teams, an International Mission Board (IMB) mission summer program for college students.
The previous summer I went to South Korea through Nehemiah Teams and the Lord changed my life through it. Needless to say, I was pretty excited about this turn of events.
Despite reaching out to Nehemiah Teams only five days prior to their orientation, the Lord opened every door for me to go to Southeast Asia with them.
I applied for a visa and it was accepted within 24 hours, I sped through my IMB application and, on top of that, the Lord provided a much needed $4,500 in 36 hours. He also prepared me spiritually and emotionally in every way.
In Southeast Asia, my teammate and I shared the gospel with Buddhists, discipled new believers through sharing Bible stories and saw over 20 people make professions of faith.
Upon returning to the U.S., the Lord opened another door for me to serve Him as a mission mobilizer with Nehemiah Teams, an opportunity that would not have happened if I went to Central Africa.
The Lord answers prayer. He turns the scariest, most frustrating circumstances into ways to bring glory to Himself and joy to us.
Despite two weeks of doubt and fear, Daniel and Isaiah made a full recovery, and the family is back in their country serving the Lord. Despite my frustration, doubt and uncertainty, the Lord used me to advance His name overseas, and then gave me certain future steps to serve Him.
What Paul writes in Romans 8:28 rings true – “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.”
Amidst the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and Week of Prayer for International Missions, observed Dec. 3-10, this passage speaks volumes. The prayers we lift up, the missionaries we support and the lives of those on mission all over the globe are all working together for His good and His glory – even when we don’t get to see it right away.
Learn more about how you can support Nehemiah Teams missionaries, like Jack, and international missionaries through the IMB at imb.org. Give to the 2023 Lottie Moon Offering by visiting imb.org/lottiemoon.
