“Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Elijah was a righteous man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.” (James 5:16-18)
In the year 2008, I was approaching my 59thbirthday and was well aware that I could retire from my job as a high school teacher when I reached my 60th. I had a desire to go overseas and serve as a missionary or associate missionary in some capacity or another. My wife was not real crazy about the idea but had agreed that if that was what I felt the Lord calling us to do, then we would do it. Our initial plan was to serve for two years at least and then see how the Lord would lead after that.
I started praying on a daily basis and asked the Lord to wake me in the morning prior to my normal 6AM wake up time so that I could spend time in the Scriptures and in prayer for His guidance. Every day for over a year, He would awaken me at 4 or 5 and I would spend time, reading the Bible, seeking His face and asking Him to show me what we should do. Never once did He fail to wake me up! Finally, one day, I was asking Him what He wanted for my life and He answered with these words: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1)
It was not an audible voice, but I heard it as clear as if there were someone in the room and I wrote it down in the notebook I had in my hand waiting for a response to my passionate request. I had not been reading in the book of Genesis that morning or any time in the previous months but those words came to me clearly and succinctly. Thus started a lengthy, and oft times, difficult adventure to obey these words that had been given to me.
We first applied to the masters program with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board (IMB) and began the lengthy process of paperwork and medical screening to get the mission boards approval to serve with them overseas. When we were in the middle of answering the medical history questionnaires for both of us, I had been scheduled for an annual prostate cancer screening, which I had done every year since age 50. This time the doctor called with unexpected results. I had come up positive for cancer!
I had to call the representative at the IMB and tell them that I had to withdraw my application until I could deal with this new roadblock. The very day we learned I had been diagnosed with cancer, Miriam talked with a doctor friend of ours and told him the news. He immediately told her for me to get in contact with a member of his church who had recently been diagnosed with prostate cancer also. His wife had done an exhaustive search and had found a doctor in Atlanta who was a pioneer in robotic surgery for prostate cancer. Long story short, we chose to go the same route.
I had been diagnosed in late March and did the surgery in June. I had to tell my principal that instead of retiring that year I would probably be around for one more year. Six months went by and in December 2009 I was declared cancer free. I again started the search for an organization to go overseas with since the IMB had discontinued the masters program I had signed up for nine months earlier. While recovering from surgery I had read a book entitled “Growing up Yanomamo,” the story of a missionary kid who had grown up in the jungles of Venezuela with his parents who were New Tribes missionaries.
After more time in prayer I called New Tribes Missions, informed them of my work history, and my desire to be used overseas and asked what needs did they have for associate missionaries. They told me they had a need for teachers and their number one shortage was for a school in southern Brazil. Miriam and I prayed and then we agreed to accept a position there. We went through associate missionary training in Florida and began corresponding with the principle of the school in Brazil.
Miriam, who always has a sixth sense about these things, did not feel comfortable about going to this school. I told her that she need not worry, because God always started us in one direction and then sent us in another. Sure enough, three months before we were to go to Brazil we received notice that New Tribes would close the school in Brazil and we had to look for another school. Our options were schools in Africa, Thailand, or the Philippines.
We sent emails to each of the schools asking if they had a need for a history or PE teacher. The only school that responded was Faith Academy in Manila. They needed me to teach Bible and Boys PE. Miriam was needed as an assistant Spanish teacher. We felt that our Lord was leading us to Manila, so that is where we made plans to go. Needless to say this was far away from where we had thought our Lord would lead us, but He had only said that we would go to “a land that I will show you.” He had clearly showed us the Philippines!
One of Miriam’s greatest concerns was, how would we be able to support ourselves financially. We had raised part of the one-time funds we needed and were short $1000 for monthly support about two months before we were to leave. In one weeks time, our pastor told us the church would increase our support by $1000 a month and some close friends gave us $10,000 for one-time funds, the exact amount we were short! Thus began a fruitful and difficult adventure as we served at Faith Academy in Manila for two and one half years.
“Ultimately, every saint stands alone before God. And when He calls us to step out in faith, we begin the walk of faith alone, seeking no other comrade than the One who has called us for His purpose.” (Oswald Chambers, Not Knowing)
PRAY
1. Lord, help me to be more faithful in prayer everyday. Help me to spend time with You so that I can know You better and I will hear You when You guide my steps here, where You have placed me, and anywhere else You will lead me.
2. Lord I put all my faith and trust in You. You alone are the One I can depend upon to keep me from “turning from the right or to the left” and to keep on the path You have chosen for me.
3. Thank you for loving me so much that You died on a cross for my sins and that You have a perfect plan for my life if I am only obedient to Your word and Your voice.
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