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Missionary Ponderances: Learning To Let God Be The Answer
Natalie Monk went to Mozambique as a medical missionary with something to give. Through cross-cultural and personal challenges in a rural medical clinic, she discovered she was the learner; she didn’t have all the answers. While she had the medical training as a pediatric nurse practitioner and resources, she acknowledges having but a “fraction of the strength, resilience, intelligence, life skills, and selflessness that the Mozambicans around me had.”
As frequent physical illness tested her and ground her down, Natalie faced her own fears and anxieties and confronted prejudice, poverty, sickness, and weakness. Beyond a mere missionary experience, Natalie’s story is a deeply personal account of a young woman who comes to the end of herself, faces her fears in a perfect storm of circumstances, and develops an abiding trust in God, who is enough.
For anyone who wants to serve God but struggles with anxiety, self-doubt, and fear of not measuring up, these hard-won realizations will open room for new avenues of grace in hearts.
As frequent physical illness tested her and ground her down, Natalie faced her own fears and anxieties and confronted prejudice, poverty, sickness, and weakness. Beyond a mere missionary experience, Natalie’s story is a deeply personal account of a young woman who comes to the end of herself, faces her fears in a perfect storm of circumstances, and develops an abiding trust in God, who is enough.
For anyone who wants to serve God but struggles with anxiety, self-doubt, and fear of not measuring up, these hard-won realizations will open room for new avenues of grace in hearts.
172 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 15, 2024
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
June 3, 2025
Missionary Ponderances is more of a journey than a story.
After the beautiful descriptions of Mozambique, the page turns and reality hits.
This book took me on a bit of a roller-coaster ride. My laughter and joy at one story turned with the page to sorrow as I read the next story. The sadness it brought was followed with pictures of hope and the depth of spiritual truths of the God whom we can fully trust.
From civil war to personal battles, the author weaves descriptions of life in Mozambique with the lessons of faith she learned and the applications we can apply to our own lives. Narratives and ponderances are sprinkled with the newsletters she wrote at the time of the events, making the reader feel very close to the situations.
Scripture is shared very thoughtfully to help the reader gain perspective of God’s presence in the difficult seasons. Readers will come away with a sense of compassion, purpose, and deeper faith as well as a challenge to trust God in every situation.
The book ends with a beautiful allegory of trust and peace.
Quotes:
He is not the author of pain and suffering, but He is the solution.
Now, let’s go; let’s fight; let’s love; let’s be the amazing, beautiful ones that God meant for us to be, looking unto Jesus despite the tensions around us, knowing that He is good and at the end He will work it all out. Leave it in His perfect, holy hands and just live. Life is too short to answer every question, and there comes a time to release it and live. He is enough, and His strength is sufficient.
"I am glad that God gets angry." There is something in being able to rest in the anger of God that is comforting.
He is holy. There is no trace of abuse, exploitation, and sadism in the heart of God. His love and care for us is unmatched in this world, and He fiercely loves us.
After the beautiful descriptions of Mozambique, the page turns and reality hits.
This book took me on a bit of a roller-coaster ride. My laughter and joy at one story turned with the page to sorrow as I read the next story. The sadness it brought was followed with pictures of hope and the depth of spiritual truths of the God whom we can fully trust.
From civil war to personal battles, the author weaves descriptions of life in Mozambique with the lessons of faith she learned and the applications we can apply to our own lives. Narratives and ponderances are sprinkled with the newsletters she wrote at the time of the events, making the reader feel very close to the situations.
Scripture is shared very thoughtfully to help the reader gain perspective of God’s presence in the difficult seasons. Readers will come away with a sense of compassion, purpose, and deeper faith as well as a challenge to trust God in every situation.
The book ends with a beautiful allegory of trust and peace.
Quotes:
He is not the author of pain and suffering, but He is the solution.
Now, let’s go; let’s fight; let’s love; let’s be the amazing, beautiful ones that God meant for us to be, looking unto Jesus despite the tensions around us, knowing that He is good and at the end He will work it all out. Leave it in His perfect, holy hands and just live. Life is too short to answer every question, and there comes a time to release it and live. He is enough, and His strength is sufficient.
"I am glad that God gets angry." There is something in being able to rest in the anger of God that is comforting.
He is holy. There is no trace of abuse, exploitation, and sadism in the heart of God. His love and care for us is unmatched in this world, and He fiercely loves us.
Displaying 1 of 1 review