say I had attended and helped deliver over 50 babies while ministering in the
jungle. The looks on the faces of the congregation were priceless. The expression
on the preacher's face was utter confusion as he tried to figure out what he had said
wrong. While studying in the States, another MK almost got a guy pummeled at
Bible school. This guy kept teasing her and she wanted him to stop. So she told him
in a very strong and louder than normal voice, “Stop molesting me!” She realized
she had said something wrong when five other guys grabbed him and pinned him
against the wall. She then understood she should have said, “Stop bothering me!”
“Oops…sorry about that, I have to get to class now…bye!” She is now a missionary
with BIMI in Paraguay.
Stories like these are endless, but the end of the matter is this: these pressures of
living in a foreign country (the United States) for an MK are of such force that they
will long for the day they can return home. They want to serve God. They see the
statistics that put 95 percent of Christian preachers ministering to 5 percent of the
population in slide shows at missions conferences. They have personally seen and
know the needs of many countries. They will gladly go to their homeland (what we
call a foreign country) to preach and serve. The benefits of having an MK as one
of your missionaries are many—no need for language school, they often already
have their visas and paperwork and some even hold dual citizenship due to birth
overseas. They know the culture or are much better equipped to adapt to a new one
because they are old hands at culture shock.
When MKs go to the mission field, they don't leave for a foreign country, they go
home. They don't have to learn a strange language. They get to talk again with their
hearts and souls. They won't be living among strangers, they will be among friends.
They will finally be going home and they will plan on staying there as long as God
will use them there.
Missionary Enrichment Week brings
furloughing MKs together for a week of
fun and relationship building that helps
them understand they are not alone.
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