How did you come to trust in Jesus?
Silas: “My parents were born in another country and came to the US as refugees. My dad was the only Jesus-follower in his family, but my mom’s family followed Jesus. A whole family following Jesus wasn’t prominent in their culture, but my grandfather had heard the gospel from a man preaching from a boat while he was farming a rice paddy, and it changed his family’s life.
“It’s a blessing to be in a family following Jesus. Early in life, I said I was a Christian because that’s what the people around me said, but I didn’t understand that Jesus was alive, and that he loved and cared for me, and wanted to make me brand new.
“In middle school, I’d heard that Jesus died and rose again for me, and I wanted to live the life Jesus taught, but I struggled a lot with sexual sin. I prayed, God, I want to be who you call me to be, but I need your help. And God showed up in some amazing ways. He changed my desires, and since then, I’ve been seeking to follow God anywhere he leads.
“My faith grew in college, and when I started a career at the hospital, I learned the beauty of God being the Great Physician (Luke 5:31). I saw the power of caring for others in Jesus’s name. I’ve loved having conversations about God with patients and coworkers.
“I continued to be burdened for my dad’s family, who still follow the dominant religion of their culture. Verses like Romans 10:9, which says, ‘. . . if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised him from the dead, you will be saved,’ grew my yearning for them to know and follow Jesus, as my mom’s family had.”
Phoebe: “I grew up in a Christian home and came to know the Lord when I was five. I knew my salvation was secure in Christ, but I thought God’s approval of me depended on how well I kept the rules. It wasn’t until high school that I understood God is pleased with me, not because of my ability or effort, but because Jesus accomplished all things through his death and resurrection on my behalf.
“In high school, I was introduced to the concept of missions through short-term trips. In college, I went on a mission trip to Brazil, then spent a summer in Vancouver as a church-planting intern. Through those experiences, God opened my eyes to the diversity within the body of Christ, and the idea of moving to a place where there weren’t many followers of Jesus became more normal to me. Then, after college, I started going to Watermark and worked for an organization that trained young adults on living missionally.
“Looking back, I didn’t intend missions to be a theme throughout my life. I didn’t seek it out. God just kept leading me into opportunities to serve him in different places. I really admired missionaries, but I never had the intention of going into missions full-time.
“However, I remember one vivid moment when I had a thought that I might be overseas at some point. I didn’t dwell on it too much. I knew if it was from God, he would fulfill it.”
When did you decide to pursue global missions together?
Phoebe: “Silas and I met through a Bible study, where people from all different religious and cultural backgrounds would invite others to read the Bible together. I noticed that he lived a very missional life, but neither of us felt like God was asking us to consider international missions for our futures.”
Silas: “We ended up taking a missions class at Watermark, which showed us God’s heart for the nations. In the middle of the class, I felt strongly that God was calling me to move overseas to where the greatest need was. That was really scary for me because I didn’t know where Phoebe stood, but we talked and prayed about it for months.”
Phoebe: “Soon after, we walked out of a missions conference deeply aware that this could be what God was calling us to. There was a lot of uncertainty and tension over the next couple of years, but we continued praying, got married, had a daughter, and kept pursuing missions together. Now, as we prepare to go, we’ve seen God provide in miraculous ways.”
How can your church family at Watermark pray for you?
Silas: “The biggest ways our church family can pray for us are for supernatural protection (there is a lot of spiritual warfare where we are going), for wisdom as we learn a new culture, and that the Spirit would lead us to people who are ready to follow King Jesus.
“We often take for granted that Christian families begin with one person hearing the gospel for the first time, like my grandfather. Now Phoebe and I have the privilege of being sent by Watermark to help start that journey for other families in unreached places.”
Learn more about our sending efforts, ways to pray for missionaries, or about upcoming opportunities