Pity Parties and Growing Pains in a New Culture

My first months on the field have been full of awkward moments and growing pains as I learn to navigate life in a new culture.

Neighbors and local friends are incredibly patient with me. I’ve worked hard at the language, and on my best days, I can understand about half their words.

But those words can be arranged in so many different configurations, and I almost always miss the overall meaning of what’s being said.

A case in point:

Neighbor: Hey, I’m going to the market. Do you want me to get you anything?

Me: I’m going to the market?

Neighbor: No, I’m going to the market. Do you want anything?

Me: You want me to go to the market?

Neighbor: No. I’m going to the market.

Me: We are going to the market?

Neighbor: No.

Me: Can I go with you to the market?

Neighbor: No, but I will get you something from the market if you need it.

Me: Oh, ok. Nah, I’m good.

Some days, I feel so lost. Questions go through my head constantly: What in the world are they saying? What did I just eat? Am I making any progress in this language? Why am I crying again? What the heck am I even doing here?

These questions often lead me to my very own private pity party where I naturally take the seat of honor.

But God keeps reminding me that this isn’t my story. It’s His. He’s the hero, not me. I play a minor role in God’s story—the greatest story ever told, a story of redemption.

So every time I ask why I’m doing this, I try to remember to look outside of myself for a God-sized answer.

The role I play may be small, but it’s full of the purpose of God. It’s helping Muslims in my host culture hear the Gospel for the first time. And that is an incredible honor.

Please pray with me that I will lean on God’s strength every day and honor Him as I play my role in His story of redemption.

• Ask God to fill workers with joy each day as they join in His wonderful plan for the nations.
• Pray for grace, energy, and flexibility as workers engage in the humbling task of learning local languages.
• Ask the Lord to give Frontiers workers the words to speak to help soften the hearts of Muslims to hear and respond to the Gospel.