This month, two of our missionaries—John Holbrook in the Philippines (p. 24) and Alexa Sharma in India (p. 34)—happened to write about typical days in their life and ministry. I was excited when I saw these two articles. I greatly admire John and Alexa, and I have massive respect (awe actually) for all our missionaries who have immersed themselves in cultures not their own for the sake of the unreached. So here was a chance to gaze through not just one, but two windows into the daily life and work of two awesome missionary people!

Though I have been editing Adventist Frontiers for nearly 17 years now, as I read their stories, I was caught a bit by surprise. It turns out that neither of them typically have days filled with Bible studies and door-to-door witnessing. Instead, their missionary life seems largely to consist of daily survival—handling the onslaught of life’s big and little challenges as they come thick and fast.

These two day-in-the-life stories reminded me of something I have noticed over the years—a pattern of mission ministry that can seem paradoxical. Missionaries spend lots of time and energy proactively preparing for their ministry, laying detailed plans for outreach and setting specific goals. But when the rubber meets the road, their ministry often takes a surprising shape—it looks like banal, humdrum, daily life.

But make no mistake: this IS powerful ministry. Bible stories may not make much sense to unreached people, but watching their missionary friend/neighbor pass through the squalls of daily life with Christ as their Navigator and Pilot—that can make a life-changing impression.

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