Born in Asia, she grew up in Auckland and was educated in both New Zealand and Australia. Liz describes herself as a third culture kid, exposed to more than one culture and multiple languages growing up.

During her formative years, she was very much involved in church life and youth groups, and missionary work was always at the back of her mind. “Honestly, I thought I’d take up missionary work in my retiring years, but thought I first had to be in a career just like everyone else.”

With two science degrees, Liz in her twenties was thriving in her career as a medical scientist in Australia. But her work in diagnosing diseases — together with the sad passing of her mother — led her to feel that life is short, which revived her interest in cross-cultural mission.

“Ultimately my conviction was that God made me to be relational, but that my years are numbered, and Jesus has commanded me to ‘make disciples of all nations’. It all made perfect sense. Better to begin now, not later. Therefore I had to choose to let go of my professional career and trust in his faithfulness that this was his plan.”

That decision made, Liz was open to work in any country. She said ‘yes’ to the first one to respond to her approach, taking it as God’s leading that he opened just this one door. “That’s all I needed anyway.”

Liz is now married. Both she and her husband are very much involved in the life of the country they both work in.

It’s a country that Liz finds fascinating and she feels “very fortunate to have tasted such diversity in terms of people, culture, food, language.” When asked what challenges she faces on a daily basis, her first response was, “the amount of dust and pollution that surrounds me”. Other challenges relate to being a team member of a global organisation, where zoom meetings can be at 8 in the morning and as late as 10 at night to fit in with everyone’s time zone.

Liz is very involved in student discipleship and also teaches English at a Bible College, is a student coordinator, and a core team member of the global Engaging The University network. Her work means travelling to almost every corner of the country, much of it off the grid.

Liz is supported by Sunnynook Baptist Church in Auckland – where she was once part of their youth group, and also by Bundoora Presbyterian, the Melbourne church which first sent her on mission work.

– David Blaker
*Name changed

Pray

• For student groups to flourish. That our staff team can be up-skilled and trained, to better serve them
• We’re seeking a local staff member to join the student ministry team. Pray for the right person
• That God would open doors for the gospel to reach unbelieving students through a media project we are working on together with two other groups