Teaching Materials
Missionary Testimonies
How I Became a Missionary
by "Missionary Sue"
When I was young, my dad told me how wonderful Martin Luther was because he had translated the Bible into German. That helped me realize that it would be best if everyone in the world had the Bible in their own language. I also liked to look at maps and think about living in other countries - but I never thought about being a missionary until I was 20 years old.
The university I went to had many students from other countries. One day I helped a Muslim man from Iran find a book in the library. Then we started talking. We weren’t talking about Jesus, but all of a sudden he asked, “What do you Christians believe?” I told him about Jesus. His question showed me that there are people who don’t know about Jesus, but who WANT to know about him.
So I prayed and asked God whether he wanted me to be a missionary. I also asked my pastor and other Christians about how I could become a missionary. I wanted everyone to know about Jesus. One friend told me to write to LBT. I did. Several years later I became a missionary!
How I Became a Missionary
by LBT missionary Mary Gruell
My father was a pastor and a missionary among Latin American people. For many years he worked in Miami. One Sunday when I was seven years old, my dad preached a sermon on Pentecost Sunday. He challenged each of us in the congregation that day to let the Spirit give us the boldness to go tell everyone in our neighborhoods about Jesus. I went home all excited and did go across the street to my neighbors, but they weren’t home.
After that my goal was to be a singing, missionary nurse. Later that changed to being just a missionary. Sometimes I would forget about that desire, but eventually I would feel it again. In college I studied to become a teacher and after graduation taught in Lutheran schools in Florida for eight years.
During my last year of teaching in Florida, I learned that there were thousands of language groups and millions of people who did not have the Bible in their languages. I also learned that an organization called Lutheran Bible Translators was helping language groups to have the Scriptures in their heart language. That’s when I decided to become a missionary teacher so that by teaching the children of LBT missionaries I could help the missionaries get God’s Word to his people.
If you are considering becoming a missionary yourself, please contact Sharon Vega, Missionary Personnel Supervisor, by phone at 1-800-532-4253 or by e-mail. She would like to pray that you would follow God's guidance for your life, no matter where that might lead. Your name is for prayer only, and you will not receive any other correspondence unless you request it.
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