When in Doubt, Try it Out

If you’re anything like Carla, she thought B4T (business for transformation) wasn’t really for her. Her heart was pulled by the idea of reaching the least reached. She loved the thought of doing something that would have such a great impact in the scope of eternity. Laughing she’d explain that you wouldn’t want her trying to do business. Leave that for the people who knew what they were talking about. Plus, she adored her job as a 1st grade ESL teacher. She couldn’t imagine leaving those sticky hands and smiles missing teeth to go live in a foreign country. In the evenings she would curl up on her couch, eyes glued to her phone. She’d scroll her Facebook feed, reading stories of incredible missionary experiences and ads calling for those who wanted to go.

Finally, one of the ads caught her eye. A short term opportunity calling for teachers to come and do teacher trainings. “B4T can be short term?”, she wondered. The dates fit perfectly into her school break, so she began to pray about the opportunity. Doubt flooded her mind as to whether this was the right thing to do. Was she good enough of a teacher to do a training? Was she going to have what it took?

Before she knew it, the tires of her plane were skidding down the tarmac. As she watched out the plane window, nothing about this new land seemed familiar. Her heart raced with excitement. She remembered how each time she had prayed the Lord had been faithful to send a confirmation that YES this was an opportunity for her. When she looked into the bright eyes of these children half a world away from her own, she smiled and as realized that she knew how to do this! This was all she had studied and all she had done professionally for years! New continent, sure, but the basics were the same. She began to teach with confidence as the local teachers watched and learned from her techniques. Later, during a private teachers’ workshop, she answered questions from local teachers who were hungry for more creative fuel for their curriculums.

One teacher raised her hand with a very different question. As the translator translated her question, Carla’s eyes filled with tears. She had asked, “Why do you come here to help us or our kids? There’s something different about you”. Taking the teacher aside after the workshop, Carla explained the call God had placed in her heart. Fascinated, the teacher asked Carla to pray with her to receive Christ. In this restricted nation these moments are precious and few and far between. She- of all people- had found a place in B4T.

Are you a Carla? Do you think that you couldn’t possibly fit the B4T lifestyle or skillset? I encourage you this week with this: when in doubt, try it out. Contact us about the many short term opportunities we have for professionals interested in conducting training in a variety of subjects and trades. You may be surprised at what a perfect fit the opportunity waiting for you is.