I had an interesting conversation with one of our missionaries that I've had the pleasure of working with on several occasions. They returned to their field of service with their 2 kids a few days ago from their first home assignment (a.k.a. furlough). I enjoyed hearing how they had picked up many new contacts interested in their ministry and enjoyed answering some technical questions.

Then came one of those sweet moments where you get to really hear what's really going on. You know, the type that only ever happen unscheduled, but are the things that friendships are made of. He shared with me what it felt like to come back to the field for the first time in contrast to the original trip to the field. The first time this family went, they were excited and energized, but didn't really know what to expect or how things were going to work out. This time, they had their home setup. They knew the people they were working with and had expectations of what they were going to be able to accomplish in this next term of ministry. It was the little things that were getting to him though. They wisely had people house sitting who took care of their home, but this meant an empty kitchen when they arrived home. They were hungry and all they had were the remainder of a highly suspect jar of mayonnaise, some crackers and an almost empty bottle of BBQ sauce that was nearly full when they left. It sounded like jet lag was also getting to him. He commented that he went to bed at 2am and woke at 10pm. They hadn't made the transition yet.

I won't reveal the names because that isn't the point of this post. This could really be the story of any missionary in another country that you know. The better we understand the struggles, frustrations, annoyances and temptations that missionaries undergo, the better we can support them in prayer and action. Maybe you could ship some Sweet Baby Ray's Honey BBQ Sauce over to them. I don't know what your other missionary friends like, but I'm a big fan of that stuff so maybe they are too! :-)