God's grace and teamwork

“If I had to pick a cartoon character to describe Tristan,” Wes Jank says, “it would be the panda from Kung-fu Panda.”

Wes says that’s the kind of guy Tristan is. “The kind that wears his emotions on his face and lives life out loud,” Wes adds.

Wes first met Tristan almost three years ago, during his first year of NTM Missionary Training. Wes and his wife, Tenley, were volunteering some time just “hanging out” with some of the local youth.

Part of NTM missionary training encourages some significant time spent in the community, developing relationships. Wes says he and Tenley were privileged to teach chronologically through the Bible, with a handful of teenagers.

Tristan was one of that group.

“The truth is, that was a really tough year for my wife and me,” Wesley shares candidly. “We had made a commitment to those kids and we poured our lives into them. And to be honest, it got messy…really messy."

“There were very few people amidst our tribe of teenagers who knew Jesus. Very few.

And so we worked. At that time, we had no children so we were virtually able to spend huge amounts of time with them, taking every opportunity to be involved in their lives.

And for all our hard work, we saw not a single one come to know Jesus … not a one, not even my buddy Tristan,” Wes continues.

At the start of their second year as students at the MTC, Wes and Tenley saw many changes to their lives. Some changes were due to a workload increase in their classes, but the most dramatic changes came with the arrival of their new baby boy.

Suddenly they found themselves without enough time to do many of the things they had been involved in.

Thankfully, Wes says, other people joined their team in reaching out to the local youth. “It was cool to see the body of Christ working the way it’s supposed to,” Wes says.

The months passed and found Wes and Tenley graduated from missionary training and traveling to various places to work on their partnership development.

And then, Wes says, God’s work in those local youth started to be visible.

“Here’s the kicker,” he shares. “After we were gone, kids began to get saved!  And guess who was among them? You guessed it, my buddy Tristan.”

The verse that came to Wes’ attention was 1 Corinthians 3:7. “It’s not important who does the planting or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.”

God’s work in Tristan’s life and in lives of others in the group of youth pointed Wes to profound truth about how He works. He blesses teams of people who serve Him faithfully and leave the results in His Hands.

And Wes is rejoicing to have been part of something great that God was doing all along in those young lives. “We were a team;” Wes explains. “My wife and I planted seeds, others watered and finally we were seeing our first fruits. It was an exciting time.”

It’s been a little over three years since Wes and Tenley first started working with the youth in that little town. Recently, he had the chance to go visit Tristan at Bible college.

“How cool is that: my buddy Tristan is in Bible college!” Wes exclaims.

And finally, Tristan had the chance to share his testimony.

He started by talking about sin and how he was separated from God, using verses to back up what he was talking about as he walked Wes through what Jesus had done for him.

And God’s work of transformation was much in evidence.

“My buddy, the Kung Fu Panda, is a Christian. Tristan knows Jesus!” Wes shares joyfully.

“And this is why we are missionaries,” he adds. “To see lost people come to Jesus.”

Wes and Tenley are very thankful for the training they received at the NTM Missionary Training Center and for the relationship-building assignment that God used in beautiful ways to add souls to His Kingdom. They are currently preparing to head overseas to be involved in NTM church-planting ministries. And once again, they will be part of a team whose efforts God will bless and use for His glory.

Think about it. What greater team is there to join than God’s team--those who share His Good News all over the world with people who need desperately to know Him. Find out about missionary training for yourself.