Somewhere in the World: Calling and Assignment

Somewhere in the World
One of my favorite stories in my faith journey begins with my praying momma.

In 1985, Christian artist Wayne Watson released a song called Somewhere in the World. One lyric especially captured my mom’s heart:
“And I don’t even know her name, but I am praying for her just the same.
That the Lord would write His name upon her heart.”

So my mom prayed. Faithfully. Daily. Not only for her eight year old son, but for his future wife.

She did not know her name. She did not know where she lived. But somewhere in the world, another mom was praying a similar prayer for her eight year old daughter.

We had no idea how those prayers would intersect.

A Bigger Story Than We Knew
My wife Wendy is from Guatemala in Central America. We met in our early college years while she was in an international studies program and learning English. At the time, we thought we were just building a relationship. Looking back, we see that God was building something much bigger.

He was preparing us for a life connected to global mission through the marketplace.

We began serving at our local church with a heart for the nations. We stepped into missions leadership, supporting missionary families and global projects. At the same time, we were both working vocationally.

Wendy served as a public school teacher, loving preschool students and families from diverse cultures and nations.
I worked in operations and leadership roles, serving entrepreneurs and organizations in the marketplace.

This year we celebrate thirty years of marriage. We were young when we started. Two families. Two cultures. Learning humility. Learning dependence on Jesus. Through it all, we have tried to keep Christ at the center of our marriage and our mission.

Matthew 6:33 became an anchor for us:
“Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Calling and Assignment
Our calling has never changed. Jesus made it clear in Matthew 22:37–39. Love God. Love others.

What has changed over the years is our assignment.

Student. Marketplace leader. Team builder. Community volunteer. Church servant. Different seasons. Same calling.

For a while, the Lord gave us a picture that stayed with us: a quiver full of arrows being shot into the world. We assumed that meant formal ministry. Maybe pastoring. Maybe serving internationally full time.

But as we prayed and wrestled, Psalm 127 reframed our thinking.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.”

We realized faithfulness mattered more than location. Obedience mattered more than title.

Then verse 3:
“Children are a heritage from the Lord… like arrows in the hand of a warrior.”
Our children were the arrows. Our workplace was the field. Our community was the mission ground.
We did not have to chase a platform. We had to steward what God had already placed in our hands.
Jeremiah 29:11 reminded us that God’s plans are not random. They are purposeful. Even when we cannot see the whole picture.

Somewhere in the World Today
So here is the real question.

Where are you in your story?

What has God been stirring in you?

At The Stone Table, we often talk about closing the sacred and secular divide. The Great Commission in Matthew 28 was not given only to pastors or missionaries. Jesus said, “All authority has been given to Me… Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.”

That command reaches into boardrooms, classrooms, startups, construction sites, and coffee shops.
Somewhere in the world today someone needs the hope of Christ. That “somewhere” may be across an ocean. It may also be across the office.

The question is not whether you are called.
The question is how you will respond.

What steps are you taking?

Learn
Continue reshaping your theology of work. Christ has redeemed all things, including your vocation. Your work is not separate from God’s mission. It is one of the primary places it unfolds.

Give
Leverage your resources strategically. Through your local church. Through Global Project Support opportunities with The Stone Table. Your generosity can accelerate gospel work among unreached people groups.

Go
Ask God who He is placing in front of you. A neighbor. A coworker. A city. A nation. Faithfulness may begin with a conversation, but it should not end there.

Somewhere in the world there is a tribe, a tongue, a nation that has not yet heard the hope we carry.

Let’s join the praying mommas.
Let’s steward our marriages, our families, our workplaces, and our resources with intentionality.
Let’s make Jesus known at work and around the world.