Dear Future Goer,
As I reflect on what God has taught me over the past two years of cross-cultural ministry, these are the major themes that come to my mind and heart:
1. God is sovereign. I was terrified to agree to move to Mexico City. In March of 2019 I spent a day in the mountains, ruminating on the decision and going back and forth, back and forth. I was looking for a sign in the clouds. I did come away that day planning to take the GoCorps placement, but I was still afraid. I was scared to say yes because of all that could happen and change, be hard and painful; and I was scared to say no to an opportunity to pursue God’s call to cross-cultural missions in a Spanish-speaking culture. I said yes. It has been a difficult but rewarding two years, and I do not regret it at all. “The heart of man pIans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). I had no idea what would happen in these two years, but God knew, and He used and continues to use every twist and turn.
2. Your life and ministry will look way different from what you envision now. Practice surrendering your hopes, expectations, and plans to the Lord now, before fundraising or getting on a plane. God is the One calling you and guiding you, and the One who will use you in the ways He determines. He will write a better story than you can.
After a year of serving virtually as best I could from the U.S. because of the pandemic, I was back in Mexico City and still not doing what (in my mind) I’d come there to do. I’d expected to be in full time ministry to girls rescued from human trafficking. Instead, I spent the first months at retreats, learning, re-adjusting to the culture, improving my Spanish, and investing in my church. The next few months I was a facilitator and guide for summer interns from the U.S. I was able to begin mentoring a young woman who’d been trafficked, but it wasn’t until about half way into my second year that I was able to start helping with the project I’d planned to join in March of 2020. Even then, my limited hours weren’t spent serving in the ways I’d imagined. I wrestled with this. I felt like I wasn’t really making any difference because I wasn’t serving in the ways I’d pictured or told my partners I’d be serving. Frankly, it hurt my pride (in a good way) that the ministry didn’t seem to need me desperately, and that it took time to build their trust.
In spite of these disappointments and insecurities, I grew and changed in ways I didn’t realize until I stepped back into my home culture for Christmas break. There I began to notice I was more peaceful, more trustful of the Lord, and more flexible.
Us college grads are not experts in our fields, nor as missionaries. We need training, mentoring, correction, and a dose or two of humility. I heard so many times before I moved to the field that my time in Mexico would be even more of a blessing to me than to those I would serve. I resented that because I felt that wasn’t worth the investment of my partners. But now I’m beginning to see that maybe in God’s kingdom, our being blessed through the growing, learning, and stretching is in itself the blessing to those we “serve”. We become a lot like children in our adjustment to a new context (and, at least in my experience, stay that way a long time). We are needy and we make lots of mistakes. We don’t understand much of what’s going on around us, though we might think we do. Yet children are an immeasurable blessing. God uses our weakness and rewards our simple obedience. So trust that God is using you even when you feel like you aren’t doing much at all. To the nationals you serve, simply moving to their culture and seeking to know and relate to them shows a lot of love, and represents Jesus’ incarnation (when we are humble). God will use you, even though the fruit may not be visible to your eyes.
3. This isn’t the end of your missions story. As I write, I am two years and two days from when I first boarded a plane to Mexico City. These years have been full of twists and turns, ups and downs, deserts and springs, weariness and rest. I’m extending my stay by about five months because I feel there’s more God has for me to do and learn here. I’m now ministering in Oaxaca, Mexico, and absolutely loving it. I don’t see myself in Mexico City long term, but that doesn’t mean my time there was wasted. Your initial GoCorps placement may be a stepping stone toward God’s next assignment for you as His servant, whether in another country or your hometown, in full time ministry, or a secular workplace. Persevere, see your commitment through to the end, even when it’s hard, and trust He who calls you to produce the fruit.
“Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." -1 Thessalonians 5:23-24