Missio Colonia | Kevin and Kathi in Cologne, Germany

Kevin: The possibility of us becoming missionaries goes back several months. We were recently married this summer, and we were wrestling with where our next steps should be. Both of us have been working in jobs we don't necessarily feel called to long term. After exploring some options on the internet, we came across Greater Europe Mission, and we were impressed with what we saw. We contacted the mission, and they told us that they have a church-planting ministry starting in Cologne. Well, this made me very excited because I had lived in Cologne for a time. So, we jumped into this opportunity at full speed.

After some of the excitement died down, both of us started to question what our real motivations for wanting to be missionaries. For Kathi, it was a question of calling. She has known for a long time that she was called to ministry, and she has even received direction toward European missions. But, she wonder whether she was actually following God's call or just following me.

For me, I really struggled with why I wanted to be a missionary. For awhile I thought that I was pursuing this simply because I wanted to live in Cologne. After exploring this, I saw that that was not the case. In my heart, I really would have gone anywhere. Then it occurred to me that my motivation was at least partially escapist. I just wanted to get away from the tepid Christianity that I've been experiencing here in the States. I'm kind of a like the green 18-year old wanting to go to war in order to capture glory. It was a hard question, but I asked myself, "do you want to go because you love the lost?" Ouch.

Well, those doubts made us second guess any inclination we had to be missionaries. So, we sought the Lord through fasting and prayer. What we heard from Him was that He is greater than any of our motivations, and He can purify our hearts if He chooses to send us. Since that time, He has been giving us direction toward the mission field. He has also begun to purify our hearts as well. Kathi is seeing that her calling to minister can be fulfilled in Cologne. God has been renewing in me a heart for those who don't know Him and an excitement for working in the harvest field.

And so, here we are. We're about to embark on this journey, and we're scared to death. We know that we have no idea what we're getting into. But, we trust God that He will be with us at every step. Who are we to be missionaries? With that attitude in mind, we've made 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 our mission verse:

When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that you faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power.