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Remembering the Big Picture

Being a missionary is not always easy and even when it feels easiest it is really some of the toughest times. I do not mean anything bad by this but it just takes intentionality to keep your focus on God and not let Satan tempt you. This is especially true when you are working for God in a new country. Working in another country with a language different from what you know is hard and you are far away from your comforts too.

One of the times that it is hard to not be able to speak the same language as my students is when I am teaching Bible. This is a time I really want my students to understand what I am saying although verses from the Bible can be hard to understand in your first language. This means I have to really simplify what I say during Bible time to help my students comprehend the topics we are discussing.

Not speaking the same language as my students has truly pushed me so hard in my teaching and my faith. In the classroom what I do to help my students understand in Bible class and others is use simple English and speak slowly. I also use some hand signals or act things out as well as other visuals like printed off pictures of things. Another thing that I do is use lots of repetition. My students repeat words after me that I believe are important and I repeat my direction many times. Also I review topics from previous lessons at the start of every class. Repetition is something I have found to be so beneficial and valuable for my students and we have done lots of review in our classes but they know it now and I can start them off counting and they will finish counting now.

Not speaking the same language as my students has pushed me in my faith because I am not always sure what they are saying on going through. This is hard because I am not sure how I can help them best or what I can say that they will understand to help counsel them. To help me and my students with this I have started to pray more intentionally. I pray for students by name and what I have noticed about their personality, academics, or their families. I do not know everything they may be going through but I know that God does and He hears even our unspoken prayer requests. I give each student and their worries to God because He knows them better than I will.

As I have been praying intentionally for my students it helps to remind me especially on my hard days of why I am here. I am not here to be far away, I am not not here to take a tour of the town, I am not here for a stamp in my passport, and I could go on and on. I am here to not just teach but show God’s love to these students, their families, and their community. This can take work sometimes to let go of my bad days and fully give them to God so that I can teach and live with the right attitude. Not just on my bad days but on my good days too when I just want to be at the beach I need to be intentional and continue to pray to God and pray for my students.

Sometimes in the States, in Mexico, or just in my classroom I have good days and I have bad days but no matter the day it is important to pray. The big picture is that one day we will all be able to go home to God’s kingdom and we want to make sure that the way we live glorifies Him and put the Gospel on display of others to see as well. There is always someone watching the choices you make especially as a teacher so it is important that we live and love the way God would. It will be an amazing day when we are all by God’s side and surrounded by so many people who we know and love.

– Sydni Williams, GEM Missionary

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Abundantly Clear

When I look back on my journey to Global Education Ministries it is quick in time but very detailed in how. Each step you will hear about may not mean much when you read it, but at that moment for me or my family, or even someone around me, that was a clear message from God that this is what I was supposed to do next.

I was saved at a very young age but my mom and pastor at the time wanted to make sure that I truly understood what I was doing. After a little while and many questions, everyone decided that I was ready and there was no reason to stop me from inviting Jesus into my heart if it was what I really wanted to do. From then on I have always been very strong in my faith and knew that I loved God and even helped others around me to love God too. I came to notice this not because of all the VBS events or camps I had volunteered at but after leading my high school Fellowship of Christian Athletes club. Here I was able to see many people who were not too sure about God or what it meant to really live out your faith. I knew when I was president of our FCA club that I needed to be living out my faith as an example to others.

In my senior year of high school, I applied for a scholarship program to teach in Wake County for three years after my graduation. I planned to return to my hometown after I graduated to teach locally. Although, now I am excited to tell you how God has shown me he has a different and much bigger plan for me than I could have even planned for myself.

Within just a short month, starting in mid-March God began to set pieces into motion for His plan to take place. In mid-March, I attended a career fair through UNCW and this is where I first interacted with Global Education Ministries. This led to a more in detail meeting the next day to discuss what the organization is, and it was supposed to be about an hour, but we sat talking for over two hours. As these meetings took place, I felt comfortable and excited and continued down the path I felt was right. Nearly a week later after this meeting, I was asked to interview with the founder of this organization. This meeting was supposed to be in person at the GEM offices in Wilmington, NC. The weather in Wilmington on this day was unsafe, so we met through Zoom for two and a half hours and somehow the weather did not interrupt. After that interview just four short days later I was extended a contract to teach with Global Education Ministries for two years at their Manantial School in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca.

This contract came with lots of excitement but also many nerves as this made this opportunity real and something I needed to seriously consider. In the same week, I received my contract from GEM I also submitted my edTPA (internship assessment for graduation requirements), started teaching all subjects in my internship classroom, took my final licensure test, had my second formal observation, and then substituted for my partnership teacher for the first time. To say that week was a busy week would be an understatement. I had briefly discussed this opportunity to work with GEM with my family but not at all as much as I would have liked to. My family is very important to me so I really wanted their opinions and support with this new opportunity.

Thankfully, Spring Break for me was right around the corner, so I was able to come home and discuss the contract and opportunity with my family then. This is when I saw even more that this is what God wanted me to do. As each step of the way, God continued to open doors but not just for me but my family as well. On Easter Sunday I was at home in Raleigh for spring break and at church, our pastor’s message felt like it was directly for myself and my family to hear. He said that we need to not hold onto this message inside the four walls of the church but to go and tell, and do not be afraid for God will roll the rock away. Then as I thought through more questions there was little to no push back in each situation. Things like my healthcare coverage or phone plan that I thought may have been an issue were both already covered in Mexico. God has taken care of everything along the way and made it so clear at the same time so that I know that I am truly supposed to combine my passion for teaching and love for God to work with GEM.

Now I am so thankful for this opportunity and have loved sharing how God has been working in so many ways throughout this new journey. Also, I am thankful that God knows our needs and has a specific plan for each of us because as I look back, I see how many other things have been tied to me being able to do this now. I am so thankful that God will turn our mess into our message and that he loves us no matter what.

– Sydni Williams, GEM Missionary