Here is a wonderful example of what it means to be re-ignited in midlife! We welcome Rosemarie Kowalski as a guest blogger and thank her for sharing this faith-story!

Re-Purposed

by Rosemarie Kowalski

Waldemar’s family escaped communist Poland, their visa obtained through the kindness of a government friend. Waldemar arrived in Canada as a toddler with his parents. His mother was an accountant; his father was a civil engineer, but none of that mattered. They lost everything and had to start over. His father became a laborer and formed a company to paint homes. Mom stayed home with Waldemar and his younger sister. In their 40s, they realized their calling to pastor. Their pastoral specialty was restoring broken people and reconciling fractured churches.

Waldemar felt called to missions as a teenager. He finished Bible School, worked at Sears for a few years while he finished his Masters degree, and pastored a church. Then his teaching gift drew him to Seattle, where he’s taught at a Christian university for 28 years.

I followed him along, our four children in tow. I became the primary caretaker when our daughter contracted Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Our family cried and prayed together through Kirsten’s five joint replacements in hips, knees, and ankle (so far). But we continued to volunteer at churches, completed our PhD, and taught overseas every second summer. I found a great job that allowed us to support missionaries: after all, we were called to missions. If we couldn’t go, we would send others.

Then, last spring, a bombshell hit us. An email from a missionary in Indonesia changed the course of our lives. “Could you come to plant a church among English speakers? We’ve been praying for this city for 15 years.”

Our hearts instantly said yes. Waldemar had just signed his teaching contract for the next year, so he was obligated to another year at the university. However, within the week, we began to seek permissions from our mission organization, and downsize our home. We told our children, parents, and friend that we were leaving in a year, built out our basement, and moved into a little space. We itinerate on weekends, raising funds and prayer support.

“People will ask, why should we send old people?” our pastor asked us. “Why not invest in an extra 20 or 30 years of a young person’s life?”

We chuckled. What a great question. So we asked the missionaries, “Why should others send us?”

They replied with enthusiasm: “You have so many advantages! Your age commands respect in Asian culture. Your education is golden. And the group we want to reach – students and business owners with international connections – need to learn and improve their English. They may only step into a church each week for the English lesson.

Wow! Life with Jesus is an adventure. We’ve been repurposed for a new season, this permanent move with only occasional visits home. We may even retire in Indonesia: its senior visas for those over 55 would allow us to stay for good. We’re filled with excitement because this fulfills our calling. Of course, we’re occasionally terrified by what we don’t know, too. We’ll need new friends, housing, and a new culture. We’re enrolled in language school … at our age!

Our own story – Waldemar and Rosemarie’s – isn’t yet done. We’ve waited until our late 50s to fulfill our mission calling. Now we’re leaving thriving careers, communities where we are known and loved, our families, our home, and everything familiar. The rest of the tale will be written according to God’s own purposes.

People ask us, “What makes this leap of faith possible? How can you leave a comfortable retirement that waits in a few years – to go to Indonesia, far from home and family?”

We’ve said a hundred yeses on our journey. We said a trusting yes to go to missions when we were children. Our yeses included the mind-stimulating yes of education. The hard-working yes of jobs that supported God’s mission. The sometimes-exhausting yes of raising children to love Jesus. The faithful yes as volunteers in Canadian and American churches. The patient yes of staying put until God moved. And our biggest yes to date: “Will you go to plant a church in Indonesia.” Of course we said yes. We’ll leave everything familiar in a few months as part of our life of “yes!” to God’s voice.

How is God repurposing you? What were your dreams and hopes as a child or teenager? What have you learned and experienced since? What transitions have been pleasant? Which ones have been painful? Have you said yes – or not me, please – to God along the way? Are you willing to give Him all you are and have? Are you willing to take what is offered by others – no matter how unfamiliar or strange it may feel? Are you willing to lay down your own plans for God’s grand scheme of reconciling every person in every place to Himself? Are you willing to live life “out of control” in submission to an all-powerful Ruler of the universe?

God knows the beginning and the end. Each day, He welcomes us into his Story of life and hope – and sends us into that world with joyful anticipation … and a bit of trepidation. It will be different than we think. And more exciting.

Click here to learn more about the Kowalskis and their journey of faith, obedience and re-purposing!