Five Ways to Love Your Missionary

For us who live overseas, summer is a much-anticipated time of visiting family and friends in our home country.  We are excited for many reasons, to shop at familiar stores with clothing in our size, to indulge ourselves in our favorite foods, to drive a car (maybe for the first time in months), and of course to spend time with our loved ones.  In the end, we make the trip (30 hours of travel for me) on a plane with our babies and tons of luggage, to see you - our beloved family and friends.  This will be my first year making that journey, and as I look forward to it with anticipation, I also have in my mind those words of warning from close friends who have told me that while they are excited to visit, these trips are often laced with disappointment and some difficult emotions.

So, as we enter this season of traveling across the world to see our friends and family, I offer these tips, from someone in the field, as to how to show your loved ones who are coming home that you love them.

1. Trust us that we know, as much as you do, how difficult it is to be away from people that you love.  We also know that you didn't choose this, we chose this for you.  We chose to have your granddaughter grow up 12 time zones away from you. We chose to celebrate Christmases in a foreign country apart from you. We grieve with you over the missed moments, but please understand that we thought about it, and we truly believe that we are choosing God's best for our family.  So, instead of asking us when we are moving back home, tell us that you miss us.  We miss you too, all the time.
2. Speaking of home, realize that “home” is a difficult concept for us.  For our children born overseas, America isn't really home for them.  For us, we feel as if we have many homes.  Don't be offended by this or think that we care less about the hometown we grew up in.  We just live with our hearts in many places.
3. When you learn about the country we live in, even just a little bit, we feel immensely grateful and loved.  We have so many experiences that we would love to share with you, but often we hold our tongue because we are afraid you aren’t interested.  When you learn about our new life and ask questions, we feel so loved. 
4. Make time in your schedule for us.  We completely understand that time doesn't stop when we come to town.  We know that you have obligations and busyness of your own, but we come across the world to spend time with you!  Please carve out some time to make new memories together.
5. When we go back overseas, don't forget us.  The simplest piece of mail can light up our week, especially if it is related to some holiday or tradition that our host country doesn’t recognize. The simple tastes and smells that we took for granted before can be so difficult to replicate here, and are so treasured when get a glimpse or a taste of them!

If you have family visiting from overseas, or if you are the one doing the visiting, I hope that you are both blessed and that you are a blessing to others.  Please share your experiences in the comments, I would love to hear!

About Melanie

Melanie and her husband Joel live and do ministry in Bangkok, Thailand.  She is mommy to baby Claire and a graduate of Denver Seminary with a degree in Intercultural Ministry.  She enjoys traveling, reading and discussing theology, and spending time with her family and friends.  She loves the adventure that comes with living every day in another culture.    

---

If you'd like to read more from this contributor, type her name in the search box on the top right.

Sharing this over at these awesome blogs