With nearly a year working here at NTM’s USA headquarters in Florida, I must say it’s quite different from working in a tribal setting.
I’m not studying language or culture, and there’s not a steady stream of tribal people stopping by to chat.
I’m not stitching up cuts on the feet, the face — or even in the armpit. (Okay, now I’ve got your attention. You’re thinking, “What?” Just ask me about that one sometime!)
And, thankfully, I’m not dealing with rats, spiders and snakes. Now black bears, on the other hand? Though I’ve not encountered the Yogi that frequents the neighbors’ trash cans, I’m told he likes to meander through my backyard.
For the most part, I live a pretty normal life. I have a nice commute along Lake Monroe on my way to the office each morning. And I’m enjoying the ministry.
But what do I do? How about I share some of the projects I’m working on.
- Writing for our NTM@work magazine: I get to write this great story for the summer issue of NTM@work. No spoiler alerts, but if you zoom in on my story arc in the photo, there are some clues! Yes, that’s me in the photo sharing my story arc at our weekly NTM@work “meeting of the minds.”
- Writing for our weekly prayer emails: I’m on a rotating schedule with others to write those.
- Writing for our daily prayer requests: I research and write the Monday through Friday daily prayer requests.
— And by the way, you can sign up for one or both of those at: http://usa.ntm.org/email-updates — - Writing a premium book on the History of NTM: Somehow I became the designated writer for this. Probably because I admitted I’m not a history buff and — should I say this out loud? — I kind of find history books boring. 🙁 So right, I was tasked with, hopefully, making it not sound boring. Funny part was, as I began researching and reading the various sources available regarding the history of NTM, I got excited!
- “Ghost-writing” letters as needed: Maybe I shouldn’t admit which ones I write. Ha! Should I admit I’ve been there, done that, at previous jobs?
- Editing, editing and more editing: There’s always something that comes across my desk to be edited. Weekly prayer email articles written by other writers, ministry booklets for missionaries on partnership development, letters from other departments or entities within NTM, promotional materials and so on.
- An admission: Before someone tells on me, I also work pretty hard at brewing fresh coffee and testing it to be sure it’s good enough to share with my co-workers. 🙂
In a nutshell, that’s what I do. I love that God has blessed me with the task of of communicating missions, of making missions real to people. Through the written word, I can take people to remote areas where God is doing amazing things in the lives of previously unreached people groups. I can bring prayer requests to people’s “inboxes.” I can share the struggles and hardships, as well as those times of profound joy, that are all part of reaching unreached people. I love how God can use every one of us to reach a lost world.