Strangers at Home: A Missionary’s Return

“Aren’t you glad to be home?” is the most common question I’ve heard since I landed back in the US after two years in South Asia.

This question creates inward confusion, as the United States, as a place, feels less like home than it did two years ago. Of course, there is immense gratitude for the time spent with family and friends whom I was so far from for so long. Yet, I had spent two years of my life digging deeply into a new language, culture, and relationships with people in an entirely different nation. I had called the States “home,” but now I wasn’t entirely sure where “home” actually was.

As with almost all of life, people process this same transition in their own way. We must adapt to the world we find ourselves in. We change in response to the new culture we immerse ourselves in, and upon returning, we adjust to what our passport country has become. Nonetheless, there is a deep-rooted change in one’s heart, mind, beliefs, and understanding of the world and God that usually cannot return to what it was before leaving “home.” Though we remain mostly the same outwardly, we have been inwardly transformed by the Spirit’s work in our lives as we lived and ministered in a completely different context.

In this process, I was reminded of the adage that when one travels for long periods of time, “you can’t go back.” All that you left in your home country will not be there when you return. Our lives move on and change as we travel, and so do the lives of those we leave behind. In returning to the States, I found that many friends had gotten married, had kids, or moved away themselves. What I came back to was not what I left.

Theological Insights

In all of these changes, there is only one unchanging reality: our true and lasting “home” cannot be an earthly one. Let’s reflect on a theological truth that grounds our reality as Christians: as redeemed children, we are one with Christ.

Stories of the patriarchs, the Exodus account, and the lives of Jesus and Paul all rush to mind. The life of a sojourner was lived by those who are the foundations of the faith. Abraham left his home, not knowing where he was going, but followed God. He held on to the promise that God had given him. We, too, have a promised land that we look toward—that is, a heavenly dwelling. As children of the promise, we have future hope in a home that God prepares for us.

We also have a present hope of a home with Christ. There is no other place we can go and be more fully known and more fully loved than with Jesus. In all of our shifting external circumstances, there is a sure and steady foundation in Christ. Whether we have made a new home in a new country or are transitioning back to a place we have known, there is a Rock who remains our hiding place and a comfort for our souls.

Practical Insights

This reality is one that is shared and expressed by many who leave their passport country for another. For the missionary returning after a time overseas, identifying and reflecting on one’s emotions in returning is a first step. Of great importance in this time of transition is the local body of believers. Here are a few ideas for the returning field worker and their local churches in their passport countries.

First, for the missionary returning home, consider bringing anchor items. These are things that remain the same wherever we live. For me, I have the same Bible that I used overseas and a small collection of postcards I collected. These are tangible reminders of the goodness of God and help keep me grounded in my present circumstances. I also brought back things like tea from South Asia that I can brew, bringing a smile to my face as I remember the people and places I love.

Practically speaking, for both those who go and those who send, the local church is an active agent in the process as a missionary returns. The missionary and their sending church are involved together in Great Commission work. In receiving a returning worker, the local church—primarily through relationships—can offer the support and space needed. A few examples include helping a returning missionary with housing, inviting them over for dinner, and listening to their stories, among many others. In all of this, the church can be intentional in serving as both support and an open space for a returning worker as they adjust and process all that God has been doing in and through them.

Furthermore, the missionary encourages and builds up the local body by sharing all that God has done while they were overseas. This is a pattern we see even in the New Testament, as Paul and his team reported back to churches about what God was doing among the Gentiles. Together, the local sending church and the sent one continue in partnership in the gospel among all nations, even as the missionary returns “home.”

Finally, we all, whether senders or sent ones, are to live as citizens of our true home in heaven. This is ultimately our hope. Whether our passports are blue or not, or whether we identify more with one culture than another, our truest home is one that is already—but not yet. We need not become consumed with our “American-ness” or lack thereof, but rather with how we display the culture of the Kingdom—how our lives reflect the deep reality of our heavenly home.

May all of us remember the security we have in our home in Christ, whether we are here or away, laboring in foreign or domestic fields. Together, let’s be the body to one another as we walk and work together for the glory of Jesus among the nations.