Why? Part 3

The final factor involves loving ourselves, and I don't mean that in some sort of weird pop psychology way. For us it simply means we need to take care of ourselves. We need to eat well making sure we get the energy we need to do the ministry here. Rusty can easily lose his voice due to the demands of daily teaching like he does, and so we have to watch our vitamin intake and sleeping habits. If we don't get the right kinds of food and the right amount of sleep, then we're not going to be healthy enough to spend time with the people. I try to introduce more fresh veggies and fresh fruit so that we will be energized and ready to go.

For us another important area is exercise. I'm still not as consistent as I would like to be in this area, but throughout the last five years I have probably exercised more than I did the first fifteen years we were married. Exercise not only keeps us fit for the work, but it also improves our relationships with others by improving how we deal with stress. Dealing with the stress is important because it really does exist. We feel that it's important for us to learn to thrive in these circumstances and not let the stress ruin them. So we exercise to reduce our stress. Stress prepares you for fight or flight--neither of which are good options if we want to stay on the field and minister. If we don't deal with it properly, we'll always be complaining about how terrible it is for us here, and I truly believe we'll end up leaving the field one way or the other. Either we'll physically return to our passport country, or we'll spend so much time stressed that it impacts the quality of ministry here on the field. We can be on the field without really being on the field if you can understand that. :)

Times of stress can produce:

• Feelings of anxiety, confusion, disorientation, uncertainty, insecurity, and helplessness
  
• Fatigue, tiredness, lack of motivation, lethargy, lack of joy
  
• Illness (stress suppresses the immune system), concern about germs, fear of what might be in the food
  
• Disappointment, lack of fulfillment, discouragement, feeling hurt, feeling inadequate, feeling "out of it"
  
• Anger, irritability, contempt for the host culture, resentment (perhaps toward God), feelings of superiority or inferiority
  
• Rejection of the host culture, the mission board, even of God.
  
• Homesickness
  
• Etc.

These are definitely not the things that I want to define my time here! :)

We also take the time to relax. Going swimming for me is about equal for fun and for exercise. I absolutely love to be in the water. We also can get massages done here for a small fee. They have been excellent for working out the tight muscles! It's also been good to read good books--using the opportunity to relax but also to introduce ourselves to new stories and good quality literature.

It may seem like there is not much time left over for "me" time, but when you have your priorities right, I think you'll be surprised at how relaxing that private time can be when you know the other areas in your life have been taken care of.