Twenty years ago, I preached my first sermon, entitled “Finding Your Purpose.” I focused on a passage in Romans: “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” (Romans 8:28 NLT). I did not realize it at the time, but those words would become a great comfort to me at a time when I thought I had lost my purpose.

During a sermon series at one of my churches in November 2022, I lost my voice—and it never returned. This unexpected loss forced me to resign from my position as a district pastor. We then had to sell our home and move to another part of Minnesota, so my wife could find work to support our family. With no speaking voice and no other vocational training, I became a stay-at-home dad. Though it had felt as though everything in my life was unraveling, through it all, God remained faithful.

If I had not lost my voice, my family would not have applied in December 2023 to become AFM missionaries. If we had not moved, I would not have been able to receive world-class medical treatment at the Mayo Clinic. If I had not been forced to stay home, my body would not have gotten the rest it needed to prepare for our next assignment: serving as missionaries in Japan. Though these past years have been some of the most difficult of my life, they have all worked for my good.

All those years ago, when I preached my first sermon, I could never have imagined traveling to Japan—much less becoming a missionary there. Yet, through this journey, I have truly found my purpose. Please pray for our family as we continue to prepare for life in the mission field, and please consider joining our monthly support team.

• Twitter