Have you ever had a dream dashed only to find that God gives you a bigger one?
During the 1980s God was blessing the Boston Church of Christ with thousands of new Christians and he was sending hundreds on 30 mission teams to plant churches in major cities in the US and around the world. Chris and Ann Efstathion captured a dream for the mission field during that time and are now living it out, albeit in a way that they would have never imagined.
Chris, who was converted at the University of Florida in 1977 and moved to Boston in 1980, had attended several mission team meetings in the 1980s, but was never selected. Ann was converted in 1983 by the Northeastern University campus ministry just as the New York church was being sent out.
“Our thought was always how could we get on a mission team, and how could we support missions beyond just the financial side,” Chris said. When God shut the door on that dream, they faithfully searched for another. “We got the idea of retiring early, supporting ourselves to go somewhere and do something for God before we were too old to be able to.”
In answer to prayers for their new dream, 20 years ago Chris had the opportunity to join a new construction company as a non-ownership partner, and when the company became profitable, proposed to his boss that in lieu of an annual bonus, the money be set aside for a pension when he retired at age 55.
Once their children, Rachel (now 25) and Christopher (23), were in middle school, Ann resumed her career as a nutritionist for a Boston hospital and worked three days a week. When Christopher started his last semester of college, Chris and Ann retired.
Meanwhile, God had been laying the plans for them to serve on the mission field in ways they never imagined.
Since 2005, the Efstathions’ home church, the Worcester County Church of Christ in Massachusetts, has sponsored an annual missions trip to Tirana, Albania to encourage the church. Different members have gone, each time with a focus of strengthening the church and meeting the needs to the disciples. At the same time, the disciples in Tirana have been an incredible inspiration to the Worcester church.
Chris and Ann’s traveling missionary work began in 2006 when they first traveled to Tirana as part of the annual missions trip sponsored by the Worcester church. They led a marriage retreat, shared with the leaders and encouraged the disciples.
They met Shawn Wooten at a conference in Worcester, and Shawn invited them to visit the church in Kiev, which they did in February 2008, followed by an eight week visit during the summer of 2009.
“That was such a great experience for our whole family,” Ann said.
That summer trip was an eye opening and life changing trip for the Efstathions.
“Watching the Wooten family as they loved and shared Jesus with people all over Ukraine and Eastern Europe was crazy,” Chris said. “They gave us opportunities to meet with people each day, to go to different midweek services and have our kids share about our mistakes as parents.
“For the first time, we saw that God could use us to encourage others on the mission field,” he said.
The Wootens also took the Efstathion family to Budapest and Zagreb, where they got to meet the disciples from those churches. Shawn invited Chris to take a year sabbatical from his job and come to Europe, but Chris’ boss was not supportive of the idea.
Shawn said that since that trip in 2008, he and Lena have been praying for Chris and Ann’s retirement so that they could continue encouraging the churches in a greater capacity.
“Their humble hearts and deep convictions had an incredible impact on the churches we visited,” Shawn said. “I am so thankful for all they have done in Eastern Europe, and to have them as partners for Lena and me is a great blessing!”
From 2009 to 2014, the Efstathions and Wootens maintained their relationship, as Shawn and Lena traveled to the US, often staying at the Efstathions’ home.
In 2015, because of their early retirement, Chris and Ann were able to spend three months in Europe that included three weeks in Istanbul in February, a month in Bucharest, 10 days in Tirana and three weeks in Zagreb in September and October, with similar plans for 2016.
“In June, we also got to go to Tirana as part of the Worcester church’s annual missions trip,” Chris said.
“That meant when we went back in October it felt like we had just been there, and we were able to help build unity in the church and we got to visit disciples in their homes that we hadn’t had the time or opportunity to visit before,” Ann said. “It really deepened our relationships with the church.”
When they are back at home, Chris and Ann maintain their relationships with each of the churches through a group Skype call every other week and other electronic conversations. In the Worcester church, they help to lead the Youth and Family ministry, teach a rotation in the preteen class, and Chris serves on the Board of Directors as well as a volunteer administrator.
Chris said that much of their success as traveling missionaries is due to the support and continued training he and Ann receive from the Worcester Church and its leaders as well as the support of the European Missions Society (EMS), which helps fund these Eastern European churches.
“We couldn’t do what we do if Tom and Sydney (Worcester church leaders Tom and Sydney Caswell) were not training and supporting us,” Chris said.
Evangelist Tom Caswell said the Worcester church is also strengthened by the Efstathions’ missionary trips, even though it is hard to have them away for so long.
“The sense of pride the entire church feels, knowing that one of their own is having such an incredible impact on the churches we support with our special missions fund,” Tom said. “It helps our special missions giving have them over there serving – we Skype them into one of our midweek services while they are serving one of the churches, and hearing from them moves the hearts of the Christians here in Worcester. It brings the mission and the mission field right to us and makes it personal.”
Valdur Koha, EMS President, said that he wishes many more couples would take the initiative to encourage those on the mission field, and commends their examples as part-time missionaries, noting that EMS has needed to provide only minimal guidance and support.
“It is important to find disciples who are willing and able to learn the culture of the nation and the particular needs of the churches in the mission field,” Valdur said. “Chris and Ann have grown to be experienced and effective helpers in various countries in Eastern Europe.”
“When it calls us to go to all nations, I am convinced this verse is not campus specific, or even evangelist specific, but elders and empty nesters as well,” Shawn said. “Thank you to Chris and Ann for choosing a challenging field, giving your heart, and being used by God to impact many nations.”
How many more empty nesters will hear God’s call to serve? How many more young professionals will structure their work life so they can be self-supporting missionaries one day?
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” -- Matthew 9:36-38