Sometimes I wonder if people really understand how slow I am. Which means I talk slowly and listen slowly. I had to read this a few times to get everything to stick in my mind. Great questions, not sure if I can answer them all. There are still so many things I don’t understand myself.
I have a few questions. How did you go about selling your stuff to go to Africa? How did you pay off “debt” before leaving the country? Also, did you have any financial support when you left America? Was it hard to TELL others WHAT you were going to do as missionaries in Africa?
I can tell you for sure that it was no easy decision to pack up and leave Texas. I knew then that I was turning my back on everything that was normal for my culture. I was abandoning what was important in the practice of my religion. I was leaving family and friends behind. I was leaving the things I enjoyed behind.
However the desire to be where God wanted me to be, was more than I could handle. So I had to pack up and go. Little did I know at the time that God had me do what I did, not for some grand ministry, but just so He could be closer to me.
Once we decided to go, we did just that. I gave notice at work, and we started packing. Selling our stuff was pretty easy. Well actually letting go was hard, especially since you never get what you feel something is worth.
What did not work out was selling our house. I did not put enough effort into selling it before we left, and we ended up losing it our first year here in Kenya. We simply did not have enough money coming in to make payments on it. I should have put it on the market sooner. Tough lesson.
I really felt like God asked me to avoid traditional fund raising methods, and just trust Him. So all we did was send out a letter, and speak at the church we were attending at the time. We ended up landing in Nairobi with 600 dollars. No house, no car, nothing.
It was tough to trust God, but we eventually learned.
It was not hard to explain to others that we wanted to be missionaries. With the exception of a few family members it was well received by everyone. The tough part for us is asking for money, so usually we just don’t do it. Most people appreciate what we do, even if they do not understand our faith all the time.
This post was part of Ask Johnny and Kate Week. (If you follow this link and scroll down the article you will find a list of the questions and answers so far.)
Recent Comments