By Emily Hinebauch

Life on the road…or rather the road of life, the journey can be interesting.

I have learned a few things in the past few months on my first ever home assignment/furlough.  Pack light, be flexible, and always have your supply of sunflower seed close by for road trips. No but really, a few things I have learned are:

• It seems once you have given your heart to another part of the world home becomes harder to define, yet it is a frequently asked question so something has to be said.  I say, I was raised in Montana, reside in Papua New Guinea but I await my eternal home in heaven.  2 Corinthians 5:6-10.  I have learned to think often about my eternal home, when I doubt where my earthly home may be some days.

• On the days I wake up and struggle with what it is I need to do today, thinking I want to change the world by doing thing I am reminded the best thing I can and should be doing is praying. Praying and believing without any doubt that God is going to hear the prayers for spiritual revival in Papua New Guinea, salvation of friend’s families in the United States, spiritual development in my personal walk and for those who I am around.  James 1:5-8.  I have learned to seize the opportunity pray boldly for the ministry in Papua New Guinea and around me in the United States.

• I made a crazy goal to run a half marathon on my home assignment in the efforts to practice discipline in my life and push myself to reach new goals.  This has been a task at hand to commit to running throughout the week when it is the last thing on my list that I want to do.  I am always amazed that after a run how great it feels when it is over.  Leading up to the seconds before I start a run in the week I am trying to convince myself that I love to run, but who am I kidding right.   I accomplished a goal that day, I ran.  I have learned it is important to not just be so focused on one aspect of life that we forget to care for ourselves in other aspects.

These may not be relevant to everyone, but I thought I would share some of the lessons that God teaches me as a young missionary experiencing some more “first” of transitional life I live.  My prayer that through each lesson of life is that it will bring glory to the Father and that I will humbly recognize it as an opportunity to know Him more.

Emily is the Scripture Use Specialist and serves the team in many other roles as well.