In the area of Burkina Faso where my family served, we either had no rain (for nine months) or tons of rain (for the other three – hopefully!). By the end of those three months, whole rivers would form in previously dry low places. One of the regions where we worked actually became inaccessible during this time (other than by canoe – which is a fun but precarious mode of transportation). This meant that those churches annually had a season of separation from our team of workers. 

Want to know a secret? That season was often the months of greatest growth in that region – both in expansion and in depth. In fact, that region – the one who had zero access to outside cross-cultural workers annually for a few months – wound up leading the way in creative thought and interaction with culture and scripture for the whole movement. 

Once I got over being offended at not being quite as necessary as I thought I was, I began to think often about how helpful it is when movements (whether full-blown or nascent) experience periods without cross-cultural workers present. 

Last month, I asked you to pray for the workers walking through their summer stateside assignments (or furloughs). This month, pray for those who are not on furlough, those national leaders and new members of our Christian family who remain in their home country throughout the year. 

• Pray that they would be emboldened and empowered to make creative decisions about how the Bible interacts with their culture. 

• Pray that churches and small discipleship groups would grow in depth and breadth over the next months. 

• Pray that leaders would rise up in the vacuums left by furloughing workers – and that they would remain in place on the workers’ return! 

• Pray for cross-cultural workers to understand more and more their place in the Kingdom, to understand what it means to be an outside catalyst within something that God is up to.  

And for them to be okay with being a little less necessary than they thought! 

Are you interested in sharing Jesus with unreached people of the world? Or do you know someone who you think God is calling?

We can help!

Email startthejourney@mrnet.org to talk about it, or visit here to learn more.