Meet the Bell Family
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Some of you may remember when the Bell family visited us last year while on furlough from South Africa. Nate and Lauren, along with their children, have been serving with ABWE in Cape Town since 2019 and just recently returned to the field. Since the Bells are relatively new to our church family, they have graciously shared with us their testimonies and the story of how they were called to missions.
We have "boring" testimonies, as if such a thing were possible! Praise the Lord for the miraculous reconciliation of the unholy and unrighteous before the Holy and Righteous One! Death to life, enemy to family of faith—yes, every salvation is dramatic indeed. That said, from a worldly perspective, our testimony is not as exciting as others. The Lord is abundantly kind, blessing both of us with believing parents who were faithful members of a biblically faithful and gospel-proclaiming church. By the mercy of the Lord, both of us were reminded multiple times a week of our unrighteousness and need for a Savior and imputed righteousness, as our parents had us in the church every time the saints gathered. I, Nate, felt convicted as I questioned my parents following my sister's baptism. By the gracious work of the Spirit, stirred up about my own spiritual need, I cried out for the Lord to have mercy on me and repented of my rebellion against Him. I was 7 at this point and recognize the gracious work of the Lord in my life from Day 1, ultimately as a result of His sovereign grace from before the foundation of the world. By His grace, for His glory! Lauren was lying awake, disturbed by thoughts of the consequence of her sin before a just and righteous Lord and Judge. She crawled out of bed to search out her mother, who was watching a televised broadcast of a Billy Graham crusade. As she sat by her mother that evening, asking questions of the man's message, faith in the truth of the gospel soothed the tumult of her convicted soul.
These moments were some of many sweet memories and testimonies of the Lord's steadfast love and faithfulness to us as we grew in the Lord. It also happened that our church was passionate about global missions and evangelism, and so were each of our parents. In each of our homes, we were so familiar with hosting missionary families visiting the church and sharing meals and stories with them. We felt burdened by the darkness and the great need in the world. It bothered us that so many are ignorant of the good news of the Person and work of Jesus Christ. By the time we were each in high school, we had opportunities of our own to visit the mission field, and separately, just a few years apart, the Lord began to draw our hearts towards His harvest. Specifically, I, Nate, found the Spirit calling to mind Romans 10 daily to the point I felt I had no other option. I must go. The Lord is worthy of all worship. His Great Commission commands us to make disciples of all nations. He promises to energize this mission by His Spirit and empower it with a gospel message that has the power to save, and this gospel is the only hope for humans who will each give an account before their Maker. For these reasons, this mission cannot fail—by His grace and for His glory!
