How to Keep on Going When the Road Seems Long

Do you ever feel like all your hard work is in vain?

You clean your house, but it’s dirty again the next day.

You strive to teach your children something, but it seems like they never learn.

You want to change a bad habit but fall back into the same trap.

You resolve to be more patient, but once again you find your nerves on edge and your voice rising.

Here in the Mslm World we share our faith and sow seed in hard ground, but few respond.  

Follow this link to the rest of my post on Cross-Cultural Mom's Companion

Living Through Elevator Fiascos and Other Changes

The cross-cultural life is an adventure, but it’s not always comfortable.  You never quite fit in.  Things are always changing. When you’re in your foreign country, it takes years to learn the culture and language and make friends. You miss home. 

Then you visit home and feel out of place. You don’t even know how to push the buttons in an elevator. This happened to me the other day. In an airport elevator, I pushed what I thought was the second floor button, but nothing happened.  I pushed it several times before realizing that I was actually pushing a label. The button was the RAISED KNOB next to the second floor label, so I tried pushing it quickly and hoped the man standing next to me hadn’t noticed!  Every time I come home, I forget how to work the little machines at cash registers that take your credit and debit cards. It feels like learning to walk all over again.

What Keeps Me Going When Life is Overwhelming

Do you ever feel like everything happens at once? Last weekend I had two different sets of houseguests: friends from another city in Turkey who came to speak at our team retreat and friends from out of country who stayed in our home while we were away. In between packing and leaving for our retreat, the weekend included making a birthday cake and hosting a quick celebration, preparing a few meals for different guests, and stripping the beds twice to change sheets.

I was honestly happy to see dear friends and open my home to them, but rather than being motivated by genuine love and hospitality, I felt harried and stressed. I was in a “Let’s Get Through This” mode.

At the retreat, God’s voice broke through to me loud and clear:

Best Friend in 2012

Now that it’s February, have you forgotten your New Year's Resolutions? Did you set any goals in January?  I don’t like New Year’s resolutions, but I’m intrigued by an idea I got from several fellow bloggers: choosing a WORD for the year, a word that encapsulates your hopes for 2012. Different friends chose words like Rest, Communion, Peace, and Surrender. 

I chose the word FELLOWSHIP for 2012.  This year I want more than ever to cultivate close fellowship with Jesus.

One reality of life as a cross-cultural servant can be loneliness. 
You’ve left your loved ones back home.  You sometimes struggle with feeling out of place in your new country.  It takes time to build friendships, both with nationals and with other cross-cultural workers, who often seem to come and go anyway. Do you ever feel this way?

The Real Reason I'm Here

Roman ruins an hour from my house.

My husband always says that the real reason God brought us to the Middle East was because He wanted to mold and shape us. We thought we were coming to share the message and encourage others in their faith.  Perhaps God did bring us here for those reasons, but He obviously had so much more in mind because we’ve learned far more than we’ve taught. We’ve received more than we’ve imparted, and we always come back to the point of realizing that the task here goes beyond our own strength and capacity.  Any small way in which God has used us is a miracle of his grace alone.

Making Room for God in my Busy Life

What does your life look like right now?

In September, the learning curve is always high for me, and this year is no different.  My son is starting 9^th grade, and all of a sudden home school looms large. I’m also preparing a 5 week seminar on spiritual growth that starts September 26^th.  Add in time for family, friends, and outreach, and I’m left feeling a bit stressed.

Last summer I spent free time studying and preparing ten hours of material about spiritual growth. I enjoyed the preparation, but now as the date draws closer and my schedule is looking busier, I’m wondering, "Why did I say yes to this? After all this preparation, will more than 5 people come?"  I’m laughing at myself for getting stressed out over a seminar about cultivating our relationship with God.   Hmm, do I see a contradiction here??

Ten years of Middle Eastern experience tell me that either 20 or 2 people could come to the seminar I worked hard to prepare, but for me it doesn’t matter. Because the person who stands to benefit the most from this seminar is ME. The time I spent preparing encouraged and challenged me to revisit making my own relationship with God a priority. What am I doing to invest in my own spiritual growth?

Here are elements of cultivating a relationship with God in daily life that I’m rediscovering:

1.      Daily Time with God

In 25 years as a follower of Christ, I haven’t found a better way to grow spiritually.  My time reading scripture and drinking coffee is my favorite part of the day, even on those mornings when all I can manage is to stare at the page with bleary eyes!

2.      Gratitude List  

I started this last summer after I saw lists popping up everywhere on the web.  Every morning I review the previous day and jot down things I’m thankful for. This discipline helps me to notice many blessings from God I might have previously overlooked. (I’m finally reading the book myself.)

3.      “Practicing God’s Presence”

Last summer I revisited my all time favorite Christian book. I love this modern version of the classic by Brother Lawrence. I’m inspired by the thought of enjoying continual fellowship with God through the hustle and bustle of busy days. 

Favorite quote: “As Brother Lawrence continued his work, he kept up his close and easy conversation with his Maker, asking for grace along the way while making his work an offering.”

4.  Scripture Memory

After leaving this aside for many years, last summer I was challenged by Ann Voskamp's post and her thought provoking question: "Who memorizes God in the age of Google?" I worked on memorizing Ephesiasns 1:3-14.

5.     Prayer with my husband 

Sometimes it is rushed or pushed aside, but most mornings, we manage to fit in 10 minutes of prayer together before breakfast.

6.      Family time to worship and read the Bible 

It’s time for true confessions: over the summer we let this slide. Changing schedules, late nights, and the absence of routine made consistency difficult. Now that school has started we are back on the road.

What about you?  Do any of these ideas resonate with you?  What is your favorite way to make room for God in the midst of busy life?  

Looking at Change Through the Right Lenses

Does it ever seem to you that right when you have life figured out, things change on you? After spending one year in America, last year I moved back to a new house and a new ministry in the Middle East. Talk about change!

Last week I turned 47. For me this birthday is a natural turning point to reflect on my calling, recent changes, and the future.

My calling and passion:

I discovered my calling the year I met an Iranian girl named Fariba. I was a student at the University of Texas. She introduced me to about 20 Iranian friends. I shared my faith with them, had an English conversation club for women, and lived through the horror of accidently serving pork lasagna to Fariba’s M mother! That year God gave me a passion to share His love with M women.  

Fifteen years later my husband and I brought our family to the Middle East. We grew into a mentoring/discipleship ministry in a local church. God gave me many opportunities to use my gifts to encourage women.  It was a fruitful time, and I settled into feeling secure. I felt like I was in my element.

 Transition:

Last year God called me to leave that security to step out of the boat with my husband and start a new church plant. He gave us new ministry partners. Although we’ve been working seven months sharing the good news with M friends, we don’t see many results yet. Others who have planted fellowships in this country tell me I’d better dig in my heels and keep my eyes on Jesus for the long haul.

Walking by faith:

I know God is calling us, but things don’t feel so safe or predictable right now.  This is a new level of walking by faith.  We’re on the road to discovering how God can use our gifts in evangelism and church planting.  I have questions: What if we fail?  How can I use my gifts to reach M women? This is an in between time when I need to keep taking steps towards our new vision.

Three years ago God gave me a new life verse, and it gives me a great lens through which to look at life in the midst of change.

But I am like an olive tree

Flourishing in the house of God;

I trust in God’s unfailing love forever and ever.

I will praise you forever for what you have done;

In your name I will hope, for your name is good.

Psalm 52:8,9a

These verses show me several things to hold onto right now:

• Hope for the Future

The image of the olive tree flourishing in God’s house gives me hope that I’ll stay fresh, green, and fruitful, even as I get older.  I want to continue bearing fruit for His Kingdom.

• Trust in God’s goodness and love

Though I can’t see the end of the road, I can trust that God will be good to me, that He loves me and has plans to bless me and give me a future and a hope.

• Praise for what God has done

I can look back and thank God for what He has already done in my life. I am grateful for a faithful husband I can laugh with, great kids I enjoy, and supportive friends. I can look to the future knowing that the same God who blessed me in the past will be with me in the future.

Have you gone through any changes lately?  How are you coping?

Hope Against All Odds

Almost no one in my city is celebrating Easter.  People have heard of “Paskalya” or Egg Festival, as they call it, but no one is celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  As far as the eye can see, everything looks to be business as usual: block after block of 10 story cement apartment buildings, schools, parks, supermarkets.

 

I smile to myself because men aren’t celebrating the new life of Jesus Christ, but our Creator has put many signs of new life here: singing birds, flowers, and newly budding trees.  They are messengers of spring and heralds of hope.

In small pockets around this city of 4 million, believers are remembering Jesus’ resurrection.  Ten churches are planning celebrations. Our group is planning a picnic with a few non-believing friends.  We will eat together, play games, and share a 4 minute message on the meaning of Easter. Today I will take handmade Easter cards and cake to my M. neighbors, to wish them a Happy Spring.

Last night my husband and I hosted 20 English speaking young people in our home.  We read and discussed the crucifixion of Jesus from Matthew 27.  They had several insights that helped me see the scene with new eyes.  We were particularly struck by the Roman soldiers who crucified Jesus.  The same soldiers who mocked him and struck him trembled with fear hours later after they’d seen darkness come over the land, after they experienced the earthquake that accompanied Jesus’ death.   “Surely this was the son of God,” they cried.  The soldiers were convinced, but Jesus still lay dead. The disciples’ hopes in Jesus as the deliverer of Israel were crushed.

No one suspected that three days later Jesus Christ would resurrect from the dead in the most glorious display of God’s power ever seen on earth.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ gives me hope. 

• Hope that my Christian faith is really true since Jesus proved He was the son of God by conquering death.

• Hope that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead dwells inside of me, giving me strength and joy for each day.

• Hope that God will fulfill the dreams He has given me, even though sometimes the small steps I take towards them seem plodding and slow.

• Hope that our city will be transformed as more and more people find the freedom of reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ.

• Hope that there’s more to life than what I can see.

• Hope that no matter how bad yesterday was, every new day brings fresh possibilities.

• Hope that one day I will also be raised from the dead to spend eternity with God.

What are you hoping for this Easter?  Even if your dreams look impossible and your hopes are all but dead, remember that God’s power brings new life even from death.

“Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!” (Romans 15:13, The Message)

Happy Easter! Christ is risen!

Planting Seeds in Turkish Soil

Seeds are a mystery. When a farmer plants a seed, he cannot see what is happening underground, and he doesn’t know when it will rain. We cannot know what God will do through the seeds we plant when we share His love with our friends. Nothing happens without the Holy Spirit watering those seeds. God is the one who makes things grow.

Do you ever feel discouraged when people don’t seem to respond to God’s word? I’m learning to rejoice in planting seeds, not worrying about the results, just trusting that God is at work, even when we cannot see. Here are a few seed stories:


God Uses a 10 Year Old Catholic Bible

I was surprised when our Muslim friend Ali got a Bible down from the bookcase 5 minutes after our family walked into his living room. It was our first visit, and he showed us his Bible before we even had the chance to bring up spiritual things.

“I read the whole thing,” his wife Miyase said. “It’s a wonderful book.”

Leafing through his Bible, we were able to share the gospel at different points through the evening, and we learned that Miyase had just discovered she has heart problem. She was understandably upset, so I offered to pray for her. She immediately called the children into the living room, and everyone sat around with hands turned upward as I prayed. I closed my eyes, and tried to focus on the Lord instead of on how I sounded to these Muslims.

The seed for our conversation was planted when a Catholic priest gave Ali this Bible over 10 years ago.


God Uses Movies

My friend Janet just told me a great story. Last Friday at 9:30 pm her neighbor came over to ask her about the passage she was reading in the Bible Janet had given her. It was John 3, so after they talked about it, Janet gave her neighbor a movie version of the gospel of John. The woman was excited to get the movie. She came back a few days later and said she loved it so much that she watched it twice and read John again. Now she wants to memorize the book of John.

Janet says, “After 3 years of loving on them, her heart seems open and receptive for the Word and Jesus. God never stops working!”



God Uses a Tract

Last week at the little salon down the street, I felt God prompting me to give a tract that I had in my purse to the hairdresser. I like this tract, which is titled “You are Special,” because it’s about God’s love, but I wasn’t sure I was brave enough to give it to the hairdresser I’d just met. She was attractive and friendly, chatting happily while she cut my hair.

“You’ll see how nice your hair is going to look,” she said. “I always try to find out exactly what my customers want; that’s how I keep them happy, and they come back.” She kept talking, and I started praying. Suddenly I was struck by how comfortable she was selling herself to me as a hairdresser while I had something even more valuable to give her.

So I took a deep breath and said, “I’ve really enjoyed talking to you. You’re such a special, friendly person. May I give you this? It’s about how much God loves you.” She smilled as she took the tract.

This happened two weeks ago, and I don’t know how God is going to water that seed, but I pray for her every time I walk by her shop.



You never know what God will do through the small seeds you plant. Have you planted a seed of kindness or shared God’s love with anyone this week? Leave a comment and tell me about it.

Walking on Water

What do a craft beer brewery in Dallas, Texas and a pioneer church plant in Izmir, Turkey have in common?


They both involve walking on water. Remember the story about Jesus’ disciples on a boat in the middle of a terrifying storm? They see Jesus walking toward them on the lake. Jesus calls out to Peter, so Peter gets out of the boat, and for a few glorious seconds, walks on water. In his book If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get out of the Boat, John Ortberg defines water walking as taking risks for God and believing He will accomplish through you what you cannot possibly do on your own.

My younger brother Michael is setting aside a successful law practice to get out of the boat and open a craft beer brewery at age 40. After two years of careful planning, he is taking the plunge to pursue his dream: becoming a master beer brewer. It’s a scary, risky business. After all he could go bankrupt, and he has a wife and three children to support. But then again he might succeed! And that would be glorious. I admire him for going after his dream rather than spending a lifetime wishing he had.

My husband and I are also taking our first tiny steps on water to pursue a dream God gave us. Our dream is probably statistically more impossible than opening a beer brewery: we’re starting a new Christian fellowship in a city of 3 million Muslims.

First we had to get out of the boat. That meant leaving a fulfilling but comfortable ministry with people we loved in an established local church. The church was a safe place, but last year while we were home in the United States, God began to call us to get out of our boat and try the impossible: plant a new church from zero. At first I said, “Lord, are you kidding me? Isn’t it enough that we left our home eight years ago to serve you in the Middle East?” But as I prayed, I began to understand that God’s dreams for us were bigger than my own. He was calling us to a higher level of engagement with Him, to believe Him for more.

We decided to go for it.

Some days our dream looks too big. I invite a non-believing friend to our Bible study and she doesn’t come, or I explain the gospel to someone and they say, “Yes, all religions are the same.” I get discouraged, and I ask, “God, are you going to come through for us?”

Other days I’m excited and filled with hope and faith. Water walking is an adventure towards knowing God and experiencing His power. Every day has new possibilities. I pray, “Who can I reach out and show your love to today, Lord?” And I go visit a friend who is sick and take her flowers and a Jesus film. Or I offer to pray for my neighbor.

This dream God gave us is too big to accomplish by ourselves. Without his power, nothing will happen. It’s a dangerous place to be, but I’d rather take risks and believe God for the impossible than play it safe and always wonder what if? He’s calling me to trust Him like never before, and I’m going for it!

What about you? Do you have any dreams? Maybe your aspiration is to add color and fun to your life by taking on a new hobby. Maybe you are considering a risky career change or dreaming of starting a new ministry. What is God calling you to? Are you willing to get out of the boat to try some water walking?

Happy New Year!