The Missionary Single
28 Aug 2017
Alison embarked on a great adventure with God. As a vibrant Australian single woman, she went with Pioneers to Mongolia, the land of Genghis Khan, the Gobi desert and the Thousand Camel Festival. Was life a bit of a letdown, coming back to the Aussie suburbs? We asked Allie about her experience of life after missions…
What did missions look like for you?
I was asked to join a team forming in the capital of Mongolia, Ulaanbaatar while I was at Sydney Missionary Bible College. I spent two years in Ulaanbaatar and then moved to the countryside, ten hours drive west of the capital. I wanted to share the good news of Jesus to the least reached people in Mongolia, the nomads. I lived in a country town for two years and then returned to Australia in order to study.
What does life look like now?
My life now is nothing like I imagined it would ever be! I live in Canberra, I work as an emergency nurse, I’m married to an Anglican Minister, and have a dog called Ricky.
What was your transition like?
My transition back to Australia was easy, I think it was a lot easier than many stories I hear. I think one of the reasons was that I wanted to return, I had a vision to study to further equip me to serve God in a developing country. I also returned to a loving church, family and friends. And the biggest blessing was that I met my dream guy, and he ruined all my plans ????. God clearly had other plans in mind. I was blessed to marry a man whose heart’s desire is to serve his King and it is such a blessing to be able to do this together. We dream of a time when we can serve Him together overseas one day.
What has stayed with you from your overseas culture?
Speaking Mongolian to my husband while we were dating helped him fall in love with me, he thinks it’s the most beautiful language ????. I have wall hangings that I bought just before I left Mongolia. I have them hanging in our house and they make any place we live feel like home for me.
How do you think God used your missions experience to help shape who you are?
This is such a hard question, but I think it re-enforced God’s faithfulness and care for me. Time and time again he took care and provided for me in wonderful ways. I think that it helped me become a braver and wiser follower. My journey to Mongolia did not turn out how I expected it to, I can tell no glorious stories of revival or churches planted but I can say that God in His wisdom led me there, and He is still leading me here today. There are people who need to hear of Jesus in Mongolia, and there are people who need to hear of Jesus here in Canberra. Wherever I am, I want to be involved in telling people of our wonderful Savior’s love.
-AP