Joy of Receiving

The hardest years of our lives were not while living in another country, but they were two years in the USA.

We had a great first term serving in Cote d’Ivoire, but the Lord made it clear to me that I was supposed to be an agricultural missionary. This was pre-email, so I shared that news with our leadership in an air letter.

 After a couple weeks, one of my leaders replied via letter stating that I could not be an agricultural missionary because I did not have a degree in agriculture. I thought that was very strange since I was already doing some agricultural work in Cote d'Ivoire on the side and started a church with farmers during our first term..

I befriended some farmers in Adjame’, a small town outside Abidjan, and helped them with some agricultural best practices with chickens, rabbits and gardening. Some of them became believers, and we started a church in their community. I did that without an agricultural degree. Most of my relatives were farmers, and I grew up helping them.

Nevertheless, we replied to our leadership that we would still be going back to the states on a four-month furlough, and that we would not be returning to the field right away because I was going to pursue a graduate degree in agriculture.

We stepped out on faith because I would be a full-time student and could only have part-time jobs to support our family. We thought about Cheryl going back to work full-time, but her teacher’s certificate had expired, so that meant that she would have to take a job most likely earning minimum wage. After doing some calculations, her take home pay would be minimal after we paid for childcare.

I took jobs working on the university sheep and horse farm, speaking or leading  music in any church that would have me, raising vegetables to sell in a local market, bottle feeding dairy calves and selling them to high school 4-H Club members, and raising sheep for Arab Muslims to buy and butcher on the land where we parked our mobile home.

During our leave of absence to pursue that degree, God provided for us and taught us many lessons. One of the lessons was totally relying on God to provide the next week’s groceries. We had already served one  term as international missionaries, but it was in the USA that I learned that important lesson that God is the provider, not me. I am supposed to do my best to take care of my family, and God will provide for all our needs.

The Lord taught us a huge lesson about giving and generosity. Other people recognized that our family of five was struggling at times during those 18 months. We received unexpected gifts of money and food from church members, family and friends.

It was difficult for us to receive these gifts until God taught us this principal: you are not a good giver until you are a good receiver. No matter how wealthy a person may be, they need to be a gracious receiver of good deeds and acts of generosity.

Today, we are well taken care of, but if we receive an unexpected gift, we start thinking that the Lord wants us to find someone else to help. There is nothing like the joy of giving. And to experience this joy, we must also practice the joy of receiving.