The following post comes from Sam Harrell, one of CBF’s field personnel in Kenya, who is currently on “Off Field Assignment” in the United States.

Ever heard of “OFA” or Off Field Assignment? That’s CBF nomenclature for what was previously known as missionary “furlough” or “home assignment.”  The name attempts to communicate that OFA is not just a time for rest and regrouping, it’s a time when field personnel do other work in another “field;” when we get to do all those necessary and important things that can’t be done in our primary location of service.

I’d like to describe our OFA experience to you and share with you some of what this time entails:

Connection – Likely, you’ll meet up with a missionary on OFA during the CBF General Assembly. Rarely do field personnel serving internationally have the opportunity to attend the Assembly unless we’re on OFA. We get to reconnect with our larger constituency, tell our stories, meet those who make it possible for us to minister where we do.

We also get to make and renew friendships with new and old colleagues, learn of ongoing work and be challenged and uplifted. This is one of the few places we get to meet together under “one roof” and it provides an important venue for engagement. Mel and I get to attend the GA once every 2 or 3 years.

It goes without saying that one of the primary purposes of the OFA is connecting with churches to share our successes and failures, encourage their continuing involvement and participation in the work we do together and challenge them to engage locally in efforts on behalf of the most neglected. We also receive great encouragement and renewed energy for our mutual task.

Most Sundays and Wednesday nights during our OFA will see Melody and I in various parts of North Carolina and beyond, sharing our stories with CBF congregations. I have to say that we have the most fruitful time when our hosts know of and follow our work and the work of our colleagues, and are specifically engaged in their own context.  Rather than being invited to fill a mission slot, we become dynamically engaged with real questions and real possibilities.  Engagement like this goes way beyond “show and tell!”

One of our great joys and mercies is reconnecting with family. We have three boys, as of this fall, all in college. Often we go a year without seeing one or more of them. We need a time to be a part of their lives, of their world, give and receive guidance to and from them as they grow and mature.

We also have aging parents and it’s a joy and an honor to sit with them, minister to and be ministered to by their wisdom, even help them with their immediate needs and transitions. Feeling sorry for missionaries is wasted energy. That said, one of the greatest challenges we face is long periods of physical separation from those we love.

Re-Creation – I’ve heard it said that a change of venue is like a vacation, and that’s often the case. Away from the usual stresses of living and working in our normal habitat, it can be a breath of fresh air to encounter new and different challenges. In this sense, OFA can be a time of “re-creation.” It provides a time where we can see through different eyes, meet new folks, encourage and be encouraged, celebrate being a part of God’s work, be still, rest – a Sabbath of sorts. And yes, we usually take one week of our vacation during OFA.

Melody and I also make a point to participate in at least one growth event outside of our normal circles and tradition. This OFA, we have attended a conference by the Center for Action and Contemplation and its founder Fr. Richard Rohr. Primarily a conference on spirituality, the Conspire conference was a chance for us to fellowship with Catholics and other Christians from a variety of traditions, to consider God from a different angle and to hear from one who has become a life mentor to both of us.  We are so grateful for this opportunity.

Reflection – We don’t learn if we don’t reflect. At some point we need to step back and consider whether what we are doing is the right thing, is beneficial to ourselves and others, is vital and on balance, Life giving. Sometimes it’s impossible to do this when we are too close to a situation. We count it a blessing indeed that we are provided the opportunity to stop, consider all the voices, engage The Voice and, through prayer, chart our course.

To many of you, “reflection” sounds like the most passive of all the adjectives I’ve used to describe our OFA. Actually, it’s not. It’s the most active. Without it, we wouldn’t know how to move forward, we wouldn’t have the confidence or direction that we desperately need to be on The Path. In reality it’s the launching pad for any new initiative, project or partnership that we might envision or that might come our way.

We’re grateful and blessed for the 19 months of OFA that Melody and I have experienced over the last 14 years.