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January 18, 2019

Smaller Missionaries

Dear Friends,

Sometimes our smaller missionaries are among the most effective.

Imagine speaking one language at home, and another one at school. Picture being the only believer in your classroom; perhaps in your entire grade. Think about what it would be like to have all of your grandparents, in fact, all of your relatives, across an ocean and many time zones away.

This is the calling for our smaller missionaries – the children of those who are serving in a foreign culture. When their parents accepted God’s call to leave the comfort of home for a country far away, they became “family on mission,” together with their kids. We have 114 of these precious TCK or “third culture kids” on the Josiah Venture team. They are some of our most important missionaries.

It certainly isn’t easy. “School is really hard because of the grades and how the teachers act if I get a bad grade,” wrote one of our smaller missionaries in Slovenia. “If someone doesn’t know the answer to a question, they make the kid feel like a bad person. I know that’s not true, but it’s still hard.”

Proactive parenting is the key to keeping them healthy. One of our smaller missionaries in Croatia wrote, “Every night, I go over with my dad how the day went, what I need to confess that day, to make sure I have a clear conscience. Those conversations with my dad have changed my life dramatically. This year, I get to go on my 13th birthday camping weekend – it’s man time with dad.”

As family on mission, these JV kids learn to invest in others from an early age. “When I was 13 years old, when I started discipling my friend, that is when it all started. Being involved in youth group and caring for people was a turning point for me. I began feeling a call from God to do that.”

Just because they are small doesn’t mean they are any less effective. Many have been led to Christ by the faithful witness of these JV kids. They penetrate schools, communities, and families with the light of Jesus in ways that their parents cannot.

When you pray for JV this month, will you pray especially for our smaller missionaries?

I’m grateful for them, and for you,

Dave Patty President

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