Questions About Moving Abroad

Montevideo, Uruguay

For years we have considered the possibility of moving abroad.  Right now there are things that are keeping us in the US, but it continues to be in our thoughts and our prayers.  Every time we make a trip abroad, we ask the question, "Is this the place where God wants to send us to live next?"

One of the main factors in where we can live is cost of living.  While we enjoyed our visit to Luxembourg last year, for example, we know that we cannot survive there on the income God has given us.  On the other hand, most of Latin America, some of Asia and some of Europe and Africa could potentially be a place for us.  The world is a big place, and there are many places where we could go.

A second factor, and probably the most important, is ministry.  Is there something for us to do there that fits the skill sets that God has given us?  We do not want to move abroad to simply retire.  We want to be fully invested until we can no longer work.  So every time we visit a country we also ask this question, "If we lived here, what ministry would we have?  Are there teaching and training opportunities here?"

Another major factor is language.  While there are many countries where we could use English to start up a ministry to expatriates living there, we want to be able to minister among the nationals. This trip to Bolivia was a major part of seeing whether or not a Spanish speaking country could work. After a month of living there and getting some language instruction, we think it can.  So now we have two language options - English and Spanish.

There are some other more minor factors that we will consider, like health care and transportation. How hard and how expensive is it to get back to the US if we need to do that? Is it easy for us to get a visa? Is it easy to live without a car? If not, what would that cost? Is it better to rent or own a residence? Would we need to maintain a residence in the US? These and other questions would need to be answered.

The last factor and the one that will be the deciding one for us is God's call.  We want to hear God clearly speak to us about the next step we need to take. It is possible that He will call us to stay in the U.S. or He may lead us abroad. Whatever we do, we want to be sure that we are following His direction for our lives. Wherever it is, we believe that He is already putting together the pieces that will give us the ministry He has for us when we get there.  When the time comes, we will know. In the meantime, we keep doing the work He has for us right now.