10 Questions, 10 Answers

In my first year with OMS I've been asked many questions regarding my job. Some are very unique, others get asked often in a variety of ways. I figured I would take some time to answer these questions for the record, and to spur any other questions you might have. So here they are: 10 Frequently Asked Questions (or at least the ones I remember being asked).

Question #1 What is the weirdest food you have had to eat?
Contrary to popular opinion, I haven't eaten anything extraordinarily weird yet. My Boss has eaten whole sparrows but so far I’ve been spared that privilege. It does cause me to wonder, though, was God’s eye on those sparrows when they went into the deep fryer?

Question #2 What do you do on those long plane rides?
I try my best not to look suspicious of anything. A 12 hour flight is bad enough without risking getting it diverted to some remote country that you’ve never heard of. Seriously though, there isn’t much you can do on a long flight. I spend most of my time sleeping, reading, writing, and listening to music. I did try SUDUKO once, what a waste of perfectly useless time.

Question #3 What is your favorite country so far?
Probably Kenya, although I have to say that so far I have liked all of my stays in Africa. The people there are so warm and friendly and the physical beauty of Africa is unbelievable with all the variety of plants and animals.

Question #4 Why do you spend so much time in Indiana?
Why does anyone spend time in Indiana? Because they have too! It does make for good cross-cultural training though while I’m there. There are two main reasons that I spend time in Indiana.
1) For missionary training classes
2) For working at the ECC offices preparing reports and offering technical support.

Question #5 What does OMS stand for?
OMS used to be an acronym for Oriental Missionary Society. After its ministry spread to several nations outside of the orient, the acronym was dropped and the word “International” was added. Today, OMS International is involved with work in over 40 countries.

Question #6 What do I do while I'm home from my trips?
I mostly try to catch up and get ready for my next trip. I spend a lot of time on the computer while I’m home processing photos and editing video footage. It’s also a time to write newsletters and work on my blog. In addition to doing work for OMS, I also work some odd jobs for people to earn a bit of extra money.

Question #7 Do I learn the languages of the countries I travel to?
In short, No. I do try to learn key phrases and words while I am in each country though. The only language that I claim to speak other than English is German. So far, though, the only place that has come in handy is while passing through the airports in Frankfurt and Munich.

Question #8 What does ECC do?
Every Community for Christ is a ministry of OMS International. The primary objectives of ECC are planting churches, evangelism, and training national leaders and pastors. ECC often partners with existing national churches to help them grow and multiply. Because of this, several of the countries ECC operates in have no permanent foreign missionaries.

Question #9 Have you ever gotten scared about going to any country?
I’d be lying if I said no, but that fear is quickly put into check once I remember that God has a purpose and a plan for every country that I’m going to. In reality, most of the countries I travel to don’t seem as dangerous as the media and news make them out to be, and there are parts of the US that I’d be more scared to go to than any of the countries I travel to.

Question #10 What are my plans for the future, once this job is over?
Quite simply, I don’t know. I have several options available to me within OMS that I have been thinking and praying about but I haven’t made any firm decisions yet. For now, I have about one year left traveling with Dave and then we’ll see where God leads me.