I Wanted to be a Missionary

When I was a child, I wanted to be a missionary. I thought it would be great to tell others about Jesus and to help people get to heaven through those efforts. However, that didn’t work out, and I’ve only been on one mission trip in my lifetime. It was a great experience that helped me appreciate what I had, and it deepened my desire to help others find salvation, but I still didn’t know how to approach strangers and ask them if they knew Jesus.

For years, I prayed for God to help me be a witness. I attended training sessions to help me learn more about witnessing. I carried cards and tracts with the Gospel, but I just couldn’t bring myself to talk to strangers. I knew there had to be a way God could use me to get His Word to others.

I knew there had to be a way God could use me to get His Word to others.

When I first heard a Gideon speak in my church, I knew without a doubt that The Gideons was something I wanted to be part of. They were organized in their witnessing and were giving God’s Word to others for free. At first, my husband, Steve, and I became involved by donating Bibles using the GideonCards provided in our church. It was a small way to get God’s Word to people who needed it.

Still, I wanted to actively tell people about Jesus and get God’s Word into their hands. When Steve was asked if he would like to be a member of The Gideons, I knew this was the way God would use us to witness.

The New Testaments have provided me with an avenue to talk to people about Jesus. It is so simple! By using the helps in the front to tell people that God’s Word has answers for any problem, I now have the confidence to approach strangers. People are hungry to hear there are answers, and it almost always gets their attention, which opens the door to witness.

Whether it’s being involved in distributions to medical clinics, handing out New Testaments from booths at fairs, uniting in prayer with other Auxiliaries, or individually talking to people about their need for a Savior, being an Auxiliary has been a blessing beyond belief! I know God is using these efforts to reach the lost and to encourage believers who are struggling.

Watching how the Gideons and Auxiliary talk to others, and how they hand out God’s Word with love and a genuine concern, has been a tremendous spiritual learning experience for me. It’s such a privilege to serve alongside such dedicated and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ. I can’t even imagine how many people we will meet in heaven one day who will tell us, “You gave me a New Testament and now look where I am!” We will all be able to kneel at the feet of Jesus and worship Him together.

Yes, I’m finally a missionary!