For me, Rebekah, I have always been fascinated with stories of missionary life. I loved biographies of the missionaries of old and they made me excited. My extended family also has a rich history of sending missionaries into many different countries. Finally, there was the sure knowledge deep in my soul that I was not meant for a ‘normal’ life. I was not going to raise my children in a town and work in an office. My life was going to be different. Please note and be very aware that I did not say better, I said different. A missionary life is not better than someone else’s.
Colin was in second year of university when he felt that he would one day use his engineering to serve communities and spread the gospel through that. He knew in his gut that he would never become general manager of a big plant or have a high paying consulting job. His was a different path. He did work at a sugar mill for 8.5 years before we started this journey, so that was part of his training, but always in his mind was the knowledge that this work was not his lifelong plan.
We each had a conviction that God wanted us to go into missions. This conviction came many years before we started the journey. It was not just the feeling of peace that we had, we also sought the counsel of others. Through the years we spoke to our parents, our pastors and spiritual mentors and our friends. This counsel gave us other perspectives and things to consider and also kept the passion and long term view in our minds.
Finally, the circumstances lined up for us to begin our journey. There is another post which talks about timing which you can read by clicking here. These three aspects were how we knew we were called – we had our own conviction which we got through personal time with God, prayer and the Word. We received the counsel of others and after all these things, the circumstances lined up.
Whatever it is that you are asking guidance for, it is helpful to remember that God promises to be found by us. Verses such as Deuteronomy 4.29; Proverbs 8.17; Jeremiah 29.13 and Matthew 7.7 all promise that if we seek God with our whole heart, we will find Him. If you think you are called to missions or even if you are asking God for direction in another area of life, remember – conviction, counsel and circumstances.