Furlough is coming...

By the time you are reading this, I will be stateside for our furlough.  I’ve heard so many who say they don’t understand what a furlough is or why the missionary needs one.  So today’s post is more for those who are reading who are not missionaries.  It will be two-fold:  to give an explanation of what furlough is and to give insight into how to pray for the furloughing missionary.  

Every mission board is different.  There are some requirements that must be met every 4-6 years.  These generally require some time spent in the states.  Sometimes there are requirements from a sending church that must be met.  This is time that cannot be spent  traveling to supporting churches.  

We have almost 50 supporting churches.  Due to the attendance changes that are taking place in many churches, we are often asked to come for a Sunday morning or whole Sunday or a missions conference.  With almost 50 churches, it is almost impossible to get to all of our supporting churches in a calendar year.  Many missionaries take shorter furloughs.  Some churches understand the impossibility and allow us to wait until the next furlough to visit them.

During our last furlough, we put well over 20,000 miles on our vehicle and there were a few thousand more that were spent in the air.  That is a lot of travel!  It can be exhausting. 

“Brethren, pray for us.”

I Thessalonians 5:25

The furloughing missionary needs your prayer.  It is difficult to be away from their ministry for the duration of a furlough.  Pray for those who assume the leadership while they are away and for the nationals to remain faithful in the missionary’s absence.  

Pray for their walk with the Lord.  When you are not in a regular routine, it can be difficult to have those necessary extended times with the Lord. 

Pray for the missionary’s health and stamina during all the travel.  I could tell many stories, some of my own, of being deathly ill while a guest in someone’s home.  This is not fun for the host or the guest.  Pray for good rest.  It is often difficult to sleep when you are in a different bed several nights in a week.  

Pray for the family relationships of the missionary.  All that travel and very little time alone can take its toll.  It is a little different for my husband and I at this time as we are empty nesters.  I’m looking forward to the time alone in the car.  My husband will be a captive audience!  

Pray for the families with children.  The lack of a schedule and the lack of time to complete homeschooling can be very stressful for the parents and the child.  

In conclusion, although there are difficulties and stresses, missionaries are thankful for furlough.  Many call it ‘stateside ministry’ instead of furlough.  One of the biggest blessings is connecting with stateside supporters.  We have made many friends in supporting churches and look forward to the time of fellowship and reconnecting with them.  When someone in a supporting church asks questions that show that our prayer letters are read and we are prayed for, I can’t tell you what an encouragement that is to us.  When a young person or a young couple surrenders to the mission field during a chapel program or a conference that we are a part of, it makes all the travel and other difficulties worth it.  We are far from perfect.  How marvelous it is that God still chooses to us! 

*photo is taken of Mt. Fuji from the air