Missionary

People often refer to us as missionaries.  We always say, we're not missionaries, we just live here.  This picture helps to explain why:



Dedicated servant of God to Africa and Zambia for 54 years

Claudie Payton was a missionary in the traditional sense of the word.  She left her native America at the age of 36 to come to Zambia where she stayed until her death at the age of 90.  As far as I can discover, in that time she returned to the States only once for a period of 9 months. 
She remained unmarried, but was 'mother' to 41 orphans, of whom 23 died.
She took the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ to the villages of Siachitema district in the Southern Province of Zambia.
She started the Siachitema Mission, which included her orphanage, a school, a Bible College (now  moved to Jembo), a church, and now also includes a hospital.
She died at the age of 90 following a fall resulting in a fractured hip.  She was buried in the spot she chose for herself close to where she had lived and raised her children.  She was mourned at her own request, in the traditional Zambian way.

We are not missionaries in the mould of Claudie Payton, but we strive to serve our Lord where he has put us, whether at work in the UK or teaching English in Zambia. Surely every Christian should strive for an epitaph like Claudie's

Dedicated servant of God