Following His Leading
We've been on mission trips before, so when our missionary friends invited us to visit again, we thought we had a pretty good idea of what to expect. As a bridge to reach students, they had been offering free English classes to a nearby school, and had arranged for us to tutor and to share the gospel. We were also planning to participate in workshops and in worship services at our host’s church. We had some fairly solid evangelistic and disciples-training opportunities lined up. Or so we thought!
Plans Fell Through…
Upon our arrival, our friend told us that the principal of the school changed his mind and cancelled our tutoring appointments. In addition, our host church suffered a flood two months prior to our trip - renovations to the ceiling and floor were barely completed by the time we arrived. None of the audio-visual equipment had been reconnected! In this situation, what would you do?
Prov 3:5-6
Trust in the
Lord
with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct
your paths
.
When God allowed the roadblocks, He was redirecting our paths to accomplish something more important at that time.
A Setback is a Setup for a Comeback
One sister we visited has a husband who is a pathological gambler who had lost hundreds of thousands of dollars at the casino. He tried to pressure his wife to sell their business – he wanted to take the money and run off with his mistress. We tried to persuade him not to wreck the family, but he refused to listen and ran away. All we could do is to pray with the sister to strengthen her faith to persevere for the sake of her children.
She did find strength in the Lord! And after this she asked us to go and pray for an unbelieving friend whose husband had been kidnapped. When God led the way, we dropped our plans and followed
. It turned out that the friend's husband had been abducted two months ago, possibly by loan sharks. She began inquiring mediums in the hope of securing his release, but to no avail. She was left with their small children running their store by herself and worrying for her husband's life. We felt the best we could do for her was to lead her to Christ so that she could lean on Jesus. We thank God she received the Lord, and her friend is now following up with her.
The same first sister also led us to another friend of hers, who was abused by her non-Christian husband. He mistreated her both physically and mentally. She did not want to inform the police, but instead contemplated suicide to end the pain and humiliation. We decided to get to the root of the problem by witnessing to her husband. He understood the gospel, but was not yet ready to repent and confess Jesus as Lord. We learned from subsequent communication that her situation improved somewhat, and will continue to pray to uphold these sisters.
What happened to all the office and AV equipment that our missionary friend couldn't connect by himself at the beginning of our trip? It "happened" that two of our team members were AV specialists. God knew the needs of the church, and assembled the team with the right mix of skills to get the job done.
The Conclusion
When you step out of your comfort zone on a short-term mission, you will often experience God's leading in a way you would not had you stayed behind your wall of defense. Remember, turtles advance only by sticking their necks out
. Follow His lead. You'll be glad you did.
*This is a true story but the writer's name has been changed for security reasons. Troy is not his real name.
Additional Posts
Choosing a Missions Organization: Why SEND International Stands Out “Why should I be a missionary through SEND International?” Jenna, a new missionary in Eastern Europe, shared with us what she appreciates about working with SEND. The highlights for her are: - Devotion to prayer - Diligence in communication - Commitment to development - Intentionality in accountability Prayer “Back in September of 2022, the Lord reconnected me with SEND after I had met them a year prior at the Moody Bible Institute. However, before he would sign me up for anything, my Missions Coach encouraged me to pray. He said something to the effect of, "I know that you've been praying on your own for a long time. But as the Church, we are not called to walk alone. So, you and I won't talk for about a month unless you have questions. I want you to go pray with 5 or 6 others from your church about where God is calling you." That October, more than 10 friends prayed with me and we saw God answer as He directed me to Romania. From February 2024 to November 2025, I had the pleasure of being a part of team meetings in Romania with my SEND colleagues. Our meetings were four hours long, two for prayer and two for business. This has been the minimum for our team. There are also prayer meetings with the local churches we partner with, among smaller groups within our team, of course prayer with many of you across the pond, including those at our US office. The organization was built, has been sustained, and continues to run on prayer. This is my favorite thing about SEND. Communication As I mentioned above, we have a two hour block for business / ministry details in each of our meetings. This provides consistency across our team which works alongside three different churches and in a variety of ministries. It also helps us to communicate about the need for change or growth, alongside what is working well. In addition, my team director also meets with each of us, allowing us to communicate needs, considerations, and prayer requests. I've also enjoyed getting to work with SEND workers outside of my immediate region . We receive emails with the minutes from the Europe leadership team, Friday communications from our international director, and information regarding projects that affect our work among the unreached. In December of 2024, our international director at the time wrote a note to my parents for the first Christmas that I was gone. If nothing else had convinced my mom yet, this did. He took the time to care for me, but also to care well for the parents that were sending me (What it meant to my dad and mom for him to do this well has been one of the greatest ways I've been supported.). I also have some pretty wonderful regional directors. These people have prayed alongside us (while also serving in their own countries of service), they have taken time to come visit and encourage our team, and they have also taken the time to encourage the people in our churches. Development SEND has provided much in the area of development and care (spiritually, physically, mentally, and emotionally). At our regional conference (every three years), there have been medical check ups available, counseling options, and time for connecting with others on the field with similar experience. At our conference last October, I connected with a missionary who served overseas for many years, and is now serving on the administrative side of SEND. She has met with me since then for mentorship and has also invested much of her time recently in preparing a retreat for the singles across Europe. Accountability Over the years I have read and heard amazing stories of how God has worked through missionaries. God has done great things and great things He is still doing! However, people who have committed their lives to the Lord in this way are not “super Christians”. We are still humans with the same struggle against flesh that others have . A major challenge is in being isolated -- living in areas with little to no presence of other believers to sharpen them can cause many difficulties. SEND has been a great resource in this area too. Through my team, I have an accountability partner that I meet with monthly. When my regional director came to visit, he and his wife spent a day with me and asked intentional questions about how I lead, handle conflict, and how I am growing in general as a Christian. In addition, my teammates share their wisdom with me on a regular basis. These things and more have assured me that SEND International is a highly valuable organization and I'm excited to partner with them in service to, for, and with our great God! Interested in being sent by SEND?
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