Practical Suggestions for Hopeful Missionaries (Paperback)

Are you a young person who loves Jesus Christ? When missionaries come and speak in your church, do you imagine yourself laboring in God's spiritual harvest field in distant lands? Do you yearn to be dedicated to something greater than yourself and shallow Western pop-culture? If you do, I've written this book for you. I've been a missionary with Wycliffe Bible Translators since 1998. Since 2003, I've been living with my wife, Michele, and our four children in a remote village on Tanna Island in Vanuatu, which is located in the South Pacific. We have been working with a group of dedicated men and women who speak a language called "Nafe." We have completed the translation of the New Testament in their language. How precious it has been to see God's Word come alive in a minority language few people recognize or care about. In "Practical Suggestions for Hopeful Missionaries" I share my own story with you, the young, aspiring missionary. My desire is that you will be encouraged by my story and come to appreciate that, while long-term missionary service is often times difficult, it isn't impossible. You can do it I begin the book by telling you how I came to Christ while serving in the U.S. Air Force. I explain how I first became interested in cross-cultural ministry and what it was like to get trained at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL. I share a bit about Vanuatu and Tanna Island and take you through my first year overseas and the discouragement I felt at that time. At the end of each of these chapters, I offer practical suggestions for you to consider as you journey toward the mission field. Getting overseas and flourishing is what I love to see in young missionaries, and that is why I spend the second half of the book explaining ten axioms I believe are essential for you to understand and practice. I use personal anecdotes from my own ministry on Tanna to illustrate how these axioms have helped me and my family flourish in a cross cultural environment.