When my husband and I were in seminary, we had a little joke about being able to tell the missionaries from the rest of us. Missionaries were the ones who wore flip flops in January. They spent more time outside in the grass than in the library. If you went to their houses, you would probably have to sit on the floor. They didn’t want to acquire too much stuff before they went on the field.
The future missionaries had another unique quality: they felt a calling to a people group or to a specific place. Before they left the states, they studied the language and got to know the customs of the people they were going to live among. They made strategic plans to be at the right places at the right times to meet as many people as possible. They had a deep and genuine love for this group of people they hoped to reach with the gospel.
Guess what special-needs parent—you have been called to reach a specific people group too. You already speak the language. You already hang out in the same places. And God is probably growing in you a deep and genuine love for this group of people.
