I took a deep breath and opened the door to my daughter’s room. This was going to be a tough conversation. She looked at me with tear-filled eyes and said, “I hate this place.” She wasn’t alone. I was wrestling with similar feelings. Every day assaulted me with new sights, smells, and sounds. The world spun around me.
For the cross-cultural worker, the lack of the familiar often evokes internal chaos. The specific stressors vary from place to place. But the feelings are the same. This was culture shock, and our family was reeling from it.
But over the next eight months, I watched my daughter move from hating the place we called home to loving it. By God’s grace, our family began to see and enjoy his handiwork in our surroundings, the local culture, and the people we met—three of his gifts that can help any missionary see God’s glory and serve with joy.
Appreciate Natural Beauty
One day as I wrestled with the stress of culture shock, I stood on the shore and looked out over the turbulent sea. God comforted me with the knowledge that he can speak to the waters of chaos, “Peace, be still.” The Lord who calms the seas gives peace. As we lived cross-culturally in Mongolia and Liberia, God regularly calmed and refreshed us with nature: with the ocean, sky, birds, and flowers.
Lilias Trotter (1853–1928) provides an excellent example of the encouraging effect of nature. She was awake to the beauty of creation as she worked in Algeria and painted what she saw in her journal. “Oh how good it is that I have been sent here to such beauty,” she wrote. She was inspired by desert flowers. Those flowers became parables for gospel work, “breaking out of the hard dry ground and laughing at the barrenness of everything around in its faith that the rains are coming.”
For missionaries, it’s easy to focus on the negative aspects of a place, such as the excessive heat or cold or the bleakness of the land. But no matter where you are, the world is charged with God’s glory and he speaks through it. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. . . . Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world” (Ps. 19:1, 4). Missionaries can be refreshed in their work by reflecting on the natural beauty around them.
Appreciate the Culture
Missionaries can be refreshed in their work by reflecting on the natural beauty around them.
Creation isn’t the only gift God gives the missionary. The local culture, initially strange and different, can become a delight. Revelation 21:24–26 tells us that one day the kings of the earth will bring the “glory and the honor of the nations” into the new heavens and new earth. That glory, I believe, includes diverse treasures—intrinsically beautiful aspects of local culture—that will bring praise and honor to Jesus Christ.
Years ago, when our family lived in Mongolia, we attended a church where we watched several local believers offer a traditional dance. In their movements, the colors of their costumes flashed; joy shone from their faces. Their artistry was employed, not to celebrate their rich history or their ancestors but to glorify God. We watched as their worship—by those people, in that place, from that culture—was collected into the cosmic praise of our eternal God.
The experience showed our family the potential for diverse cultural artifacts and forms to be unique expressions of worship to God. One day, their glory will be brought into the new heavens and new earth. But we don’t have to wait until then. Having positive experiences like this helped us appreciate their traditions now, which can also be an antidote to culture shock.
Appreciate Local Believers
Even more important than creation and culture are the people, especially the believers. It’s tragic that some missionaries avoid joining churches. Yes, cross-cultural fellowship is challenging, but it’s worth the effort. As our family learned to participate in local congregations, we saw God’s grace transform people from different backgrounds.
One example is a woman who visited our church in Mongolia. Suspicion, fear, and bitterness tainted her expression. She had a difficult life and was no stranger to suffering. The Tibetan Buddhist monk and the shaman she regularly visited failed to give her peace and relief. But as she returned week after week and gradually came to embrace Christ, her distrust and dread gave way to a newfound joy that reflected God’s glory.
As our family learned to participate in local congregations, we saw God’s grace transform people from different backgrounds.
In our time overseas, local believers were a great source of blessing and encouragement to us. Christ used members of the local body to help us mature in ways we never would have without them. Whatever challenges missionaries face, love for local believers can expand our affection for a particular location. We learn to pray with the psalmist, “As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight” (Ps. 16:3).
Chaos to Comfort
As our time in Liberia ended, my children said, “We used to want to leave; now Liberia is our home.” When we look back on our cross-cultural homes, we’re filled with gratitude. The places, the cultures, and the people were all gifts God used to shape us and reveal his glory.
Of course, there will always be challenging or chaotic elements in a cross-cultural setting. But by God’s grace, missionaries can learn to appreciate—even to love—the place where they live.
This doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, much like cultivating a taste for a new food. But God invites us to expand our palate. If we’re patient, what was initially shocking and bitter can become appealing. The once chaotic place can become comforting. You can’t imagine living anywhere else.
Involved in Women’s Ministry? Add This to Your Discipleship Toolkit
We need one another. Yet we don’t always know how to develop deep relationships to help us grow in the Christian life. Younger believers benefit from the guidance and wisdom of more mature saints as their faith deepens. But too often, potential mentors lack clarity and training on how to engage in discipling those they can influence.
Whether you’re longing to find a spiritual mentor or hoping to serve as a guide for someone else, we have a FREE resource to encourage and equip you. In Growing Together: Taking Mentoring Beyond Small Talk and Prayer Requests, Melissa Kruger, TGC’s vice president of discipleship programming, offers encouraging lessons to guide conversations that promote spiritual growth in both the mentee and mentor.
