Jonathan and Rachel Willcock have just arrived back in the UK after two months of travel. The time has been full and they are thankful for all that they were able to do in that period.
Jonathan had a series of meetings and workshops to attend or to run. Rachel was involved in some of these meetings, but she was also able to “hang out” with their family in the USA.
The Trainers’ forum was a time to look back over some of the work that has been done over the last three years by a group from Latin America as preparation for a core curriculum for pre-field training, and to look ahead to what still needs to be done to make that core curriculum useful for our training programmes.
At the ‘Field Ministries Fair’ at the missionary training centre in the USA, Jonathan was asked to speak about the Latin America region to the students who are training there. He was able to present some of what God is doing and together with Rachel met with several students. It was so encouraging to see young people earnestly preparing for future ministry around the world. They also both had the opportunity to help out with some classes helping the students to prepare for some of the difficulties they could face on the field. Understanding the kinds of risks they could face, from natural disasters to petty crime, helps new missionaries to be better prepared as they move into new cultures and contexts.
The field of Mexico had asked Jonathan to repeat a consultant training workshop for a wider audience. He originally taught this course pre-covid and he was finally able to get back to Chihuahua last month and present the updated training. The field is growing and they need more culture and language coaches to help those who are learning culture and language in various parts of Mexico.
While in Chihuahua, Jonathan was part of a workshop in which they partnered with some local church leaders to look at the dominant worldview in Latin America. He was excited to see Global Partners working hand in hand with local churches, deepening relationships that have been growing over the years.
Rachel had the joy of spending time with all of their kids and grandkids who live in the USA. She helped their youngest granddaughter to begin to learn to read, along with “just” being an encouragement to whoever she was staying with. Their oldest grandson had been waiting for them to be with them so that they could be there at his baptism, so it was special to see his own dad baptise him.
Jonathan and Rachel expect to be in the UK until the middle of January, however they will continue with regular online meetings and staying in contact with missionaries, particularly throughout Latin America. They will also be helping out Rachel’s parents as they face the challenges of getting older.