IN THE FAMILY
THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT
This year we celebrate Walt and Jeanine who have served with Global Interaction for 40 years . We received this letter from Walt to share with you :
“ Cast Your Fate to the Wind ” was a song that captivated my mind and resonated with my spirit as a teenager . I imagined myself drifting from adventure to adventure , unfettered by commitments , in lands “ where the stars hung upside down .” When I came to two critical crossroads , I instead committed my life first to Jesus as my Lord and second to Jeanine as my wife . Today , I realise that in fact I did cast my fate to the wind but rather than some random wind I cast my fate to the wind of the Spirit of God . And God has taken me to incredible people , places and adventures I could never have imagined or engineered myself .
A third critical crossroad occurred and that was saying “ yes ” to God asking me to join my sending agency for the purpose of being sent to partner with Global Interaction ( then ABMS ) in Bangladesh .
The formidable Rev . J . D . Williams asked Jeanine and I to meet with him alone in the guest house in Dhaka . We were only in our second year in Bangladesh , very aware of our youth and inexperience and even more aware of ‘ J . D .’ s ’ formidable reputation . As I had a bad case of hepatitis ( is there ever a good one ?) I was depressed and weak and expected a word of pastoral encouragement . Instead J . D . informed us that our senior colleagues in Jamalpur , Ian and Barbara Hawley , would soon leave Jamalpur so Ian could become the Overseas Director . As soon as we were alone I burst into tears . How could we survive without their pioneering leadership and support ? How could the new fruit among the people grow ? Later , Ian assured us that the work was not his but God ’ s and God would complete the good work He had begun in the people of Jamalpur . I am profoundly grateful for and commend the faithful and creative work of people in Jamalpur who continue to serve in leadership and field positions in the development agency and as bold , wise and fruitful followers of Jesus .
I believe that God instilled a vision in the leadership on and off the field for something new God was going to do in Bangladesh . The secret to fulfilling that vision , I often reflect , is that the whole mission family had a 100 % commitment to the vision and a 110 % commitment to each other . Even though there was a very real risk that everyone ’ s tenure in the country could be cut short due to political barriers , there was total support for those team members that were called to the new vision . It was a remarkable family .
Besides one ’ s relationship with God , I used to think that the most important personality characteristic for a cross-cultural worker was flexibility . I later realised that flexibility without commitment yields nothing . Commitment without flexibility usually results in a miserable worker and miserable co-workers . But the combination is powerful . I now add that a commitment to being a life-long learner is the third critical ingredient . All three and you have dynamite !
- ( Above ) Walt , Jeanine , Jenny , Joy and Jacki
It is a cliché but is so often repeated because it is simply true ; the work is not ours but God ’ s . When I think of my career , it is best described simply by a recognition of the fact that somehow , by the grace of God , when God invited Jeanine and I to sit in a front row seat to see what He would do , we said “ yes .”
I have been freed to discover my own gifts with an amazing degree of trust from the leadership of Global Interaction . I have even had the freedom to make mistakes . Of course , without the freedom to make mistakes , there is no real freedom but there has been a remarkable willingness to try new things and learn from them . And I have had the very rare privilege of working with my best friends in the most fascinating places , watching God do astonishing things . What could be better than that ?!
With deepest gratitude to God and the Global Interaction family , Walt
Walt continues to serve with Global Interaction as a Global Consultant and Team Leader for the workers in the Silk Road Area .
14 GLOBAL INTERACTION