manning the booth

...it's "missions emphasis week" at gordon-conwell...meaning, plenty of buzz among students and faculty re world missions...it also means lots of missions reps descending on campus to recruit and replenish ranks...it wasn't too long ago that as students we were talking to reps...now the tables are turned...

...as we spent time next to our booth along with the other reps, we had ample opps to talk with and learn from the other reps, most of whom were considerably older than us and with extensive field experience...hmm...plenty of time, a corp of seasoned missionaries...add that up and we soaked in many lessons from workers who have lived them firsthand in the most remarkable ways...

...such as...

...norman and jackie friberg, workers in afghanistan for 3+ decades...."discouragement will be your biggest challenge during your first term on the field"....his advice: cling to God and embrace support from each other and your team of partners...