Been There …

Ah, retirement has finally come! Many people look forward to that event in their lives, while others hit that time and keep on going. Let me share with you an example of one who understood where she was in life — and has positioned herself to keep reaching the unreached.

Arriving in Papua New Guinea (PNG) in 1960, Edna Trigg and her husband ministered among the Yagaria people group until 1981, training teachers, helping with the New Testament translation and teaching literacy. The Triggs then moved to one of the main centers and continued ministering to the missionaries and nationals alike by typing, overseeing Bible correspondence courses, handling radio communications with interior teams and anything else to be of help.

… Done That

After her husband passed away, Edna continued her ministries, until she retired from the PNG field in 2004. Edna had positioned herself for 44 years to reach the unreached. Was that all to end as she “retired”?

No, because she has continued to position herself to be used by God. When the Bible translator asked her to check the revised Yagaria New Testament, she accepted the challenge. And you know what? She is still proofreading other Bible translations, getting them ready for the printer.

Until Eternity

What a challenge! “Retirement” does not mean no more ministry. As retired missionaries embrace where God has them now, they continue to position themselves to reach out to a lost world, touching lives as long as God allows them to minister.

Pray for the Ethnos retirement complex in Sanford, Florida with its staff and residents. God continues to use His children even when “retired.” Or as Edna put it, “One does not ‘retire’; you are given a ‘retread’ and just keep on working for the Lord!”