“We want to push you to your limit,” Laurence Burn said. “We want to see how you will perform under the pressures of mission life.” He was referring to the dreaded Crucible, a camping weekend (or should I say survival weekend) intended to push all of us missionaries-in-training to the brink physically, emotionally, and mentally.
The AFM staff had intentionally shrouded the weekend in mystery so we wouldn’t know what to expect. We peppered Laurence with questions to see how much information we could extract. “What will it be like?” “Will we sleep in tents or out in the open?” One person even asked, “Will we need to bring toilet paper?” “No!” was the reply. (Later we discovered that TP is really a luxury you can do without!)
Without giving away any classified information to future missionaries-in-training, I’ll just say that the weekend was strenuous, both personally and as a team. Muscles were strained, nerves tested, and relationships stretched. But, praise God, by His grace, we all made it and were still talking to each other at the end.

Crucible: a vessel used for melting a substance that requires a high degree of heat. God also uses crucibles in our lives—tests and trials intended to help us develop trust in Him. Peter says, “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:6, 7).

Our crucible right now is our house. We are planning to leave for Cambodia in six weeks, and our house hasn’t sold. It has been on the market for the past five months. Until about a week ago, we’d had no offers and barely any showings! We are wondering what God is doing, but we are choosing to trust Him. Please pray that our house will sell and that we will have patience. We’ll keep you posted.

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