Pack Your Bags, Cri-Kee - We're Moving Out!

We Pause Now for a Brief “Inter-Mission”

Who could have foreseen the pandemic coming? Of course, God knew it was coming and He prepared His Saints well. With Come Follow Me, stay at home church, Zoom social-distance-appropriate meetings, and inter-connections of ministering all in place, the shelter-in-place guidelines provided healing downtime for many people in an otherwise frenzied world. 

But for missionaries around the world, it changed the face and shape of their mission experience forever. On April 3, 2020, the Taiwan Taipei mission and the Taiwan Taichung mission boarded up their non-native missionaries to send them back to their homes. Our mission sent 99 young missionaries on air flights to their home countries. Some had just barely arrived on their mission.

In time, most of these missionaries would receive temporary US-based reassignments to continue their missionary service. Las Vegas, San Diego, Arcadia, North Carolina – the scattering of our Taiwan Taipei Israel. They were so cute – so eager and happy to serve in their new assignments.

Most senior missionaries were sent home the following week. We arrived back in the States on April 8^th.

Since our home was still being rented out when we arrived, we were invited by one of our daughters to live with them.  We assumed squatters rights in a bedroom in their basement.  We’ve spent this time enjoying grandchildren, doing family history work, helping with projects around the house, and enjoying this brief  “inter-mission” to our mission.  As restrictions have lifted somewhat, we’ve been able to visit some of our other family members as well.

We suspected we would also be reassigned stateside, following the pattern of the younger missionaries. We have 9 months of mission time left. We were on hold, waiting for a later time when we’d receive our assignment on where to finish our missionary term of service.

Then a couple of bombshells fell on us. Our renters needed to leave early from their lease, and told us they will vacate our house in July. That leaves us with reduced income for the mission costs. Maybe we could finish our mission in our own home with a stay-at-home assignment?

The next day, our mission president from Taiwan called us. Our scattered missionaries are being reassigned back to Taiwan right away, and they need us to come and help! There are currently only 4 active cases of  COVID-19 in Taiwan so young missionaries and a few senior missionaries who still have a valid resident card are being allowed back. 

“Urgent news from the General! We’re needed at the front! 

Pack your bags, Cri-kee! We’re moving out!"

Courtesy of Flickr.com - Pawarisa Ch.

The whirlwind begins: Pray for a renter. Find a renter. Prepare the house for a new renter.

Renew the international drivers license. Make arrangements for the car. Buy chocolate chips to take to Taiwan. Finish up projects. Wait for official reassignment.

And wait. And wait. And wait. Were we really going to Taiwan at all?

It seemed like forever, but finally the flight itinerary arrived in our email box - We're flying out on July 2nd. The reassignment back to Taiwan truly is happening!  

And so we were off again! Three months after arriving back home, we are excitedly heading back in the air, Taiwan bound.

"Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen".  Matthew 28:19-20.