Sharing Truth
One question I’ve been asked since being here is “How exactly do you share the Good News in your country?” Good question. The short answer is that it happens in the context of relationships. We try to be involved in the community and be a consistent presence. Through relationships, we’re able to build trust, have conversations about both faiths, and become a regular presence in people’s lives. Ideally, we want to meet people out in the community but share truth with them in their homes. In their homes, they are more likely to open up and be receptive to what we share with them. The best… Read more
Seen & Known
On the side of the highway in Somewhere, Tennessee, next to my dented car and still a little bit shaken, I felt a still small nudge in my heart to look up. Psalm 147: 4 - He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. It had been a while since I had been in a spot where other light sources were insignificant enough to allow me to see so many stars in the sky. But at this moment, I saw them in abundance. I saw so many so clearly. And God knows exactly how many there are and knows them all by name. Incredible. For the hours I was driving before this semi… Read more
The Hard Reality of Outreach
Outreach is bitter for many reasons. Almost every woman we serve tells us that she desperately wants to leave prostitution, but her and her family’s survival depends on that work. They feel trapped in an economic system where there are more people looking for jobs than there are job opportunities. The available opportunities go to those with the most education, and many of our women still haven’t finished high school. If they do find a job, in most cases it’s not a healthy work environment: they work long hours in poor conditions and still don’t earn enough to live on. For many of them, they… Read more
Original Design
Every month our team does a three day fast that ends with a meal together and a prayer night for the country where we live. This prayer and fasting week is one of my favorite team spiritual practices. Last month, I had the opportunity to help lead our prayer night. I walked the team through one question that has been shaping the way I think about serving in a different country: God, what is your original design for this land? Scripture shows us that sin doesn’t just affect people - it affects the land itself. Adam was created from dust of the ground and because of sin, the ground feels the… Read more“How are you using your hands [to glorify Him]?”
I was at work a couple of days ago when a co-worker and I were admiring a customer's earrings. This customer’s name was Dameca. Her earrings were these grapefruit slices that had been set in resin and handmade into beautiful earrings. When we mentioned the earrings and complimented them, Dameca began sharing the story behind them. Dameca's earrings had come from an immigrant woman. This woman began making resin earrings as a means of earning an income after relocating to the United States, and she utilized the help of others to establish an online Etsy shop where she could showcase her… Read more
Learning Arabic
Outside of support raising, the thing that scared me the most about moving overseas was language learning. I was (and still am) intimidated by how hard Arabic is to learn for native English speakers. The exciting thing about learning Arabic is that it’s the start of a new journey with God and into this new culture I’m immersed in. Here are three things God has shown me about language learning this month: Language learning is the perfect opportunity to experience the culture firsthand. Language is more than just spoken words, it’s part of the country’s or region’s culture. Coffee… Read more
1 Year on the Field
Three homes, hundreds of hours of Arabic, many pounds of bread, and more than a few meltdowns. It has taken far longer than I planned to write this update, but here is my best attempt to sum it all up. Seeing my Worth The clearest place I can see God’s work over the past year is in my identity. I have struggled a lot in a job without clear daily tasks or measures of success, working with people whose openness to the gospel is frequently compared to hard, rocky soil. Who am I on days when all I accomplish is getting groceries, because that task alone took hours and left me completely… Read more
My Letter to Future Goers: Reflections from the Balkans
When I first arrived in Bulgaria, I knew that the 2 years would be fun and exciting but also challenging and difficult. I’m still processing my time there but overall here are just some of my thoughts and small bits of advice. Just like everyone else in life, there were seasons of highs and lows - however, being on a specific team with the same goals and desires to serve and minister to Bulgaria was one of the most grounding aspects of my time overseas in missions. Much of my struggles came from either miscommunication or misaligned expectations. Try to do your best to eliminate both of these… Read more
This Road So Far
My name is Cindy, and I’m a Goer! I graduated college in May with a degree in Business Administration and I am going to use it overseas. I am using my business degree in the Middle East to work and live among people that don’t know Jesus or have access to the Gospel. Through a small business, we are able to build relationships with locals and point them to Jesus. Choosing to move to the Middle East did not happen overnight; rather, this story is God’s story that He has been writing in my life since elementary school. His patient, guiding hand has led me down this road so far. I… Read more