50 Years of Waiting

Ever since Janelle accepted Jesus at the age of 3 she has known God’s call to be a missionary. I was 19, a sophomore in Bible college, when I knew I was to be a missionary. We met a few months later. I’m so glad that I had my missions call before we met because Janelle would not date anyone who didn’t have a missions call. If I had received my call after we met, my call might have been suspect.

We had known each other for two school years before we were married in 1984. In the same year I received my license to preach and began ministry as youth pastor at Trinity Campus Church. Janelle graduated in 1986. We applied to be missionaries in 1987.

We had read the requirements. Three that were significant to us were: 1) you must be 35 years or younger, 2) you must be in good health, and 3) you can have 2 children, or 3 in a rare case. We were within the guidelines and felt we were qualified.

We received the phone call from the Division of Foreign Missions in 1987. They had rejected our application. I asked why. They explained that our school loans were too high. We were very disappointed. God had called us to be missionaries. It was the steering force in our lives. But we had been told “no”.

God led us then to establish a church in Bottineau, ND. In a little more than three years we saw a congregation raised up, church property and a building. In 1991 we applied a second time to be missionaries. We waited by the phone a second time. We checked the requirements. We felt we were qualified. When the call came we were so excited. We were ready to go. But for a second time they said no. I asked why. They said that they wanted us to get more stateside ministerial experience first.

This was devastating for us. We had pioneered a church. What more could they want? I had a friend from Bible college who had gone into missions right out of school with out any senior pastor experience. We considered going with some independent missions organization. They would probably take us. But as we prayed about it, God clearly impressed us that he had placed us under the authority (the umbrella) of the Assemblies of God. He had placed them in our lives to help reveal His will. We resigned ourselves to wait once again.

This time God led us to Alaska and in 1992 we began pastoring Valley Chapel in Healy. During our pastoral ministry in each location we had many positive experiences, but some difficult ones as well. But in them all God was working and preparing us. For many years we felt we were in “God’s oven”. God has keeping the heat on, making us ready for future ministry. We kept thinking we were ready to go, but God kept us in the oven.

In 1994 God blessed us with our fourth child, Joshua. We believe that children are a blessing from the Lord, but now we had more children than we would be allowed as missionaries. In 1996 Janelle was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer. We went through a difficult summer of surgery and radiation, but God was with us in it all. When the dust settled from the cancer treatment, we felt so close to God. He had been with us in the valley. But now we wondered if we could ever be missionaries with cancer on the health record. In 1997 I turned 35. Now we had broken three of the guidelines. We were certainly unqualified.

In 1998 God began stirring our hearts to reapply for missions. The zeal for missions had never waned, but the thought of applying again with certain rejection was hard.

About the same time we felt led to take a short term missions trip to Africa. In November of 1998 we went to Nairobi, Kenya to teach at East Africa School of Theology (E.A.S.T.). Our church gave us a month leave of absence and Janelle’s mom came up to stay with the kids.

I taught “Romans & Galatians” to a class of 18 students at the Bible school.

I wanted to get to know the students so I asked each of them to give a testimony. Over the next two weeks we heard tremendous stories of how God had saved and directed the students into ministry and to EAST.

One would stand and in his testimony mention that he had been a pastor for 8 years and now God finally allowed him to come to the Bible school. Another shared how he had been a minister for 12 years and he had finally received a scholarship to come. Another spoke of his 10 year desire to come to study while he was pastoring.

God spoke to me in the classroom one morning as the students were sharing: “Now do you see why I have kept you as a pastor for 14 (now 16) years before I allowed you to be a missionary?” The answer was so obvious to me. What would I have had to give to these students if I had come right out of Bible school with little or no experience as a pastor? Because God knew what he wanted me to do in missions—train national pastors-he gave me experience pastoring before he let me go. Now when students asked questions, I spoke not just from books or theory, but from practical experiences that God had brought us through.

When we returned from the trip we submitted our application for the third time and waited with uncertainty. We wanted to go as much as ever, but now we were unqualified: too many kids, bad health record, and too old.

On October 22, 1999 the phone rang a third time. This time God said it was time. This time the Division of Foreign Missions said “Yes.” What a joyful day in the Nelson household! The call we had had for so many years was now coming to pass. Janelle had waited 32 years since her call. I had waited 18 years since my own call. Between us we had waited 50 years. But in that time God was faithful. He prepared us for the work he wanted us to do. Now we have the tools necessary to work effectively training pastors in the kingdom.

6J’s