Sherry Quinley in ministry
I have often pondered the curious manner in which a life’s story is directed. Much of our story is “given” to us. Our skin color, language, personality and worldview are all handed to us as a gift from our family. In fact, the story of our lives is well underway before we even walk out on the stage. We start speaking lines with only one word and then grow into a more active role with time. Along the way, there are always these unexpected plot twists we never see coming.
I believe that God’s sovereignty writes each scene–especially those that totally upset our comfort state and force us to deal with new realities. At that point, I think God relaxes in his chair and shouts, “Action!” Then without a script, we have to make a choice between frantically trying to reset things back the way they were or the much more interesting choice of embracing the new possibilities now before us. At that point we must often make a costly change that leads to a revised future.
Our change happened when we had already been “on the field” for five years….
Up to that point we had not used the word, “missionaries” to describe ourselves for one simple reason: we didn’t intend to do it for long. The whole “leave the USA at age 23 to go help plant a church in Jamaica and teach Bible school” was, for us, a temporary side road, an adventure and an incredible opportunity for our own development before we got on with our ultimate life back in America. One day, after four and a half years and three children, we felt that our Jamaican chapter had been completed nicely. Now what? The plan was to move to Colorado, plant a church and enjoy hunting and skiing as much as possible.
What we did not know then was that while we had been eating strange food and immersing our lives in the pains and joys of others so unlike us, God had been recalibrating our hearts in imperceptible increments.
Upon returning to our beloved homeland and attempting to fit back in and enjoy the blessed comforts and opportunities of the American life, we became aware that we were now different. Now aliens in our own land, we still deeply loved our families and rejoiced at the warmth of our reunion, but our heart was set to a different magnetic north than before. We felt an abiding uneasiness and we also started having strange experiences.
Indians working at Dairy Queen would look at us like long-lost cousins and begin pouring out their troubles. Everywhere we looked we saw “the nations” represented in young faces. The Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim people had never been given the privilege of hearing the Gospel of God’s love for them. They couldn’t be saved simply because the Gospel was a secret that they had never been told. Wherever we went, ethnic people loved us and we instantly loved them back. We began to realize that we had been given a gift of favor and a new set of eyes through which to view the world. “Oh God,” we realized, “we are called to be missionaries!”
Mainly we just felt terror at the new cloud of uncertainty totally blocking our view of the U.S. dream life. Yet, each day, our certainty grew that we were clearly hearing from God. We had no idea where it would all lead us, but through episodes of hardship, poverty and violence in Jamaica, our Father had proven that He was worthy of complete trust.
That was twenty years ago. We’ve traveled a million miles (literally) since then and have passed through diseases, an earthquake and kidnappings with no lasting harm. Asia has become our home. There we received three more children. As they gasped upon entering this world, they each breathed in Asian air. How that has affected their own life path is another story…
Chuck and Sherry Quinley
Missionaries to Thailand
Project Number 0600031
© 2009 Church of God World Missions