Waiting for the opportunity of art mission

Esther's German Refugee Mission

Interview, writing/Timothy

It is very easy for ordinary people to have a conversation with a three-year-old child in Taiwan. However, it took Esther, who was engaged in refugee missionary work in Germany, to have a complete conversation with the three-year-old child of her host family for three months.

It is difficult for ordinary people to imagine the endurance, embarrassment and frustration involved when entering a new environment with an unfamiliar language and starting to live and serve. However, for Esther, this was both a challenge and an opportunity. How did she get through this turning point in her life and welcome a new beginning? Let’s hear the story of Esther.

▲Missionaries are waiting. Esther was originally scheduled to leave for Germany in one month. At the time, she didn't know that she would have to wait another eight months before departing.

Refugees from multiple ethnic groups use music to serve across languages

For every 100 people in Germany, one is a refugee. Most of the refugees in Germany come from countries such as Syria, Libya, Palestine, war-torn countries in Africa, and Afghanistan.

Esther, who lives in Hamburg, discovered after arriving there that the refugees were divided into many ethnic groups. Most of the refugees in Hamburg spoke Persian and Arabic. Esther went to a Persian church meeting as arranged by the missionary organization she participated in, All Nations (Note).

This church has Iranian and Afghan refugees. It is located in the south of Hamburg. It has a stable membership of about 80 people and has been established for at least three years. Many refugees have only believed in the Lord for two or three years. They often share and worship in Persian, and local speakers are also invited to share in German. Esther said: "I don't speak Farsi, so it's difficult to serve people through conversations. Currently, I pay more attention to observing, studying and understanding, and getting to know sisters and female friends in the church."

Although she was unable to serve in person-to-person relationships, Esther participated in the worship group when she attended and served at Living Water Church in Tainan, Taiwan, and could play the piano. It happened that the worship team of the Persian-speaking church was short of musicians, and music transcended national borders and there was no language barrier, so she ministered through the piano.

The congregation mainly sings Persian worship songs. The direction of the lyrics in Persian music scores is exactly opposite to that in Chinese, from right to left. Therefore, when matching, one must rely on listening and following the melody. The music is rich in Arabic style, although it is not necessarily fully understood, and the music must be scored without complete control. Esther enjoys this combination. She did her best to serve this group of refugee Christians without worrying about her own safety. She humbly accepted the possibility of making mistakes because she was worshiping the Triune God.

Esther emphasized: "I also find it difficult to speak the language. I thank God for giving me the opportunity to serve. I got to know them through music. I first established a relationship with the Iranian sisters and understood their ethnic culture." Previously, this church's The missionary work is mainly led by the team of the International Mission Training Center. In 2019, God began to raise up refugees to lead gatherings. After going through the transitional stage of counseling, many brothers and sisters from Iran emerged as leaders. The International Mission Training Center also supports this change and allows them to practice leadership as much as possible. This is the way to long-term development.

▲Hamburg, Germany: Esther faced a rather large gospel field.

After four and a half years of waiting, refugee missionary work is finally launched

Why would Esther want to do refugee ministry in Germany? In fact, as early as the end of 2015, she had received a call from God and was willing to devote herself to cross-cultural missionary work and do her part for the unreached people. However, God did not send her immediately, but allowed her to search carefully for two years in prayer, fellowship, and discussions with church leaders. It was not until 2017 that Tainan Living Water Church decided to send Esther as a missionary. Esther applied for a visa to Germany in 2019 and arrived in Germany in April of that year.

Even if you have never participated in cross-cultural missionary work, brothers and sisters who have studied and lived abroad know how hard it is to live in a foreign land! Esther was optimistic about this and said frankly, "Everything is fine, thank God!" In the first month, she even had problems buying lotion in the supermarket and needed help; in the second month, she knew where to buy things. , how to take public transportation; in the third month, I became more accustomed to it, and I was no longer as frightened as when I first arrived in Hamburg. "There is a mobile app for the public transportation system in Hamburg. I downloaded it to my mobile phone and used it. It made me feel more relaxed and I could predict when the transportation system would arrive," Esther recalled.

▲Most of the refugees coming to Germany come from Syria, Libya, Palestine, war-torn African countries, Afghanistan and other countries. Pictured are Syrian refugee children.

Work hard to learn the language and practice humility during conversations

Of course, for missionaries who have just entered the field, the most challenging thing is learning the local language. Although Esther's second foreign language in college was German and she had a good foundation, there were only three classes a week at that time. In Hamburg in 2019, it was an intensive course of three hours a day, with completely different weight and intensity.

She said that in the process of learning a language, it is often necessary to adjust one's mentality and vision, and not to lose focus due to language learning. When she had the opportunity to go to a Persian church and practice actual conversations with people, she felt that her German was pretty good. "Okay, I'm better than last month!" Give yourself a little encouragement!

Based on Esther's progress in 2019, it will take about one year to master German. "One year is fast. Learning a language is a long road. You must lay a solid foundation first so that you can serve effectively in the future." Know it, know it. , I also made sufficient mental preparations before coming to Germany, but my personal experience was still different. Many times I learned to be humble, "Don't be afraid of making mistakes, don't strive for perfection, and ask the other person to speak more slowly and again," Esther said frankly. In a cross-cultural environment, many little things in life are not so easy.

▲For missionaries who have just entered the field, the most challenging thing is learning the local language.

If you want to run for a long time, physical, mental and mental health is very important

Esther loved learning new things, so in addition to learning languages, she also wanted to do other things as long as her physical strength could bear it.

However, on the other hand, physical strength and mental limitations were limited, so some things would cause Esther to struggle. I want to visit someone, but just adding in school hours and commuting, the time in the day is almost not enough! what to do? We can only slowly grasp the balance point, sometimes slow down, find space to rest, and communicate with the organization about our needs, so that we can be healthy in all aspects and continue to move forward on the missionary road.

Esther encouraged those who are committed to overseas cross-cultural missionary work to not only equip themselves with language skills, but also to maintain their physical, mental and spiritual health. Only with a stable and healthy spiritual life, coupled with interpersonal relationships, emotions, and overall health can missionaries stay in their posts for a long time.

▲Taiwan Living Water Church ministry website.

There is so much to learn and we need to rely on God’s grace

Talking about what new things she learned and gained in the first few months of 2019 when she went to the field, Esther pointed out that Hamburg is different from other workshops. Although they are part of a team, they are relatively independent in their operations. The team members each disciple different people and may not necessarily be able to work closely together. Therefore, getting to know brothers and sisters from multicultural backgrounds is the first learning. Her team includes people from Canada, the United States, Syria, South Africa, German natives... and more.

In the process, Esther worked hard to learn about German social culture and cope with it. In my impression, Germans express themselves directly and are not very polite. But when she went to the suburbs, she found that the Germans on the road often said hello and good morning, and if they had time, they would chat with her at the station. Through this experience, she realized, “Don’t be prejudicial, truly learn the way of Christ, love and get to know the people in the mission field.”

Beyond that, God challenged her to trust in God’s faithfulness and gracious provision. There are many things that need to be accomplished in a week, and God wants Esther to look to Him first, because there is only so much time and energy, and it is more important to understand what God wants, not what she wants.

One weekend before the interview, she had just moved from a homestay where she had stayed for three months to an apartment shared with a German sister. During the moving process, you need to go to a local online auction website in Germany to find local people who can help drive the truck. However, the website platform was all displayed in German, and the situation was completely unfamiliar. What I needed and who could help was beyond my control.

Esther prayed and asked God for help, focusing herself on God and reminding herself that God was in control of everything and that God was a loving and faithful God. Afterwards, a German sister from the International Mission Training Center who came to help said that this was the smoothest move she had ever participated in. It was really graceful!

In addition, shared apartments are also filled with God’s grace because they need to be affordable and easily accessible. Eating out in Germany is very expensive, and you have to take care of all your own meals. Esther also prayed that there would be a supermarket near the apartment and that it would be possible to live with Germans. The apartment I finally found was shared with a sister who had been working with the All Nations Mission Training Center. It had convenient transportation and God provided for everything I prayed for! All of this made Esther feel more deeply that she needed to hand over these uncertainties and helpless tensions to God. He is faithful.

▲Members of the International Mission Training Center. (Picture source: International Mission Training Center website)

The missionary frontline is busy, pray for language, contacts, and funds

As missionaries fighting on the front lines, of course we need the prayer support from those at the back! Esther hopes to have enough grace, patience, and wisdom every day in language learning, and to reach the level of full service as soon as possible. Learning a language is a necessary process. If she can master it quickly, she will have more time to do what God has called her to do in Germany.

In addition, I hope that God will lead her to contact several female refugees soon and invest time in them. Finally, pray for long-term funding. Esther said that the donation support currently received is only enough until mid-2020. She hopes to continue to have opportunities to share ministry with churches and institutions, and believes that God will provide.

Conclusion

Perhaps, the life of a missionary often faces challenges, but Esther in Germany always cherishes the small moments of victory, working hard and trying to express more, understand more, and have more contact. If brothers and sisters would like to receive regular sharings from Esther, or would like to support her, please feel free to contact her via email:estherwang.anf@gmail.com.

Note:
The All Nations Mission Center (All Nations) that Esther participated in is a family of global missionary communities, including church planting movements, missionary bases, pioneer churches and church planting communities. The service area spans five continents and more than 40 countries. http://allnationsfamily.org

Timothy, was the editor of Mission Magazine and interviewed many missionaries. I hope that through the report, more brothers and sisters in Christ will care about the needs of missionaries.