My husband, Mike Saum, and I have been missionaries in Kenya for the past ten years. In June of 2015 our mission agency, Africa Inland Mission, sent us back for treatment to the United States because my husband was suffering from a debilitating back injury. Even though this was a good decision, we were not prepared financially to return to the United States. Our airline tickets cost over $6,000 and because we did not have enough in our home assignment fund, we had to purchase our tickets with a credit card. This was just the first drop of the rising tide of debt.

Since our home church in Keller, Texas is very small, they are unable to house missionaries that come back home unexpectedly. We were able to acquire a rental house, but that meant an extra expense. My husband has been seeing multiple doctors since we arrived (pain management doctor, physical therapist, internal medicine doctor, chiropractors, and an orthopedic surgeon). The insurance that we receive from our mission is good overseas, but not in the States. Almost all of our medical bills were covered in Kenya, but in the United States we have extremely high deductibles, so our meager missionary salary ($1600 a month) doesn't cover much. Once again, we had to tackle our medical payments with a credit card. Since returning to the United States this past June, we have accumulated over $15,000 in medical debt in addition to the airline tickets, housing, and basic day to day living.

This is not the first time we have accumulated medical debt on a furlough from the mission field. In 2009, we accumulated over $12,000 in dental bills. In 2012, our daughter broke her arm and I had an unexpected emergency appendectomy. Again, we accumulated over $10,000 in medical debt. It took time for us to pay this off, but with the help of supporters and anonymous donors we were able to pay off the debt and return to our ministry in Africa.

We are so thankful for the understanding and generous financial help from our family, friends, and supporters in coming to our aid in times of crisis, but we can't draw from the limited well of our inner circle indefinitely. God's love and resources are boundless, but as missionaries in financial crisis, we need help finding the right people to come to the rescue. A lot of times when these emergencies occur, it is a time of crisis and you don't have the time and energy to "beat the bushes." It would be such a blessing to have an organization that could come alongside missionaries like us who find themselves in unexpected situations. Missionaries can't go back to the field with debt and it is quite daunting when your debt is in the thousands. Our heart's desire is to serve God in Kenya. My husband has made great improvements, and it won't be his health that will be delaying our return, it will be our medical debt. We know dozens of missionary ministries that have been snuffed out prematurely because of unexpected financial issues. What a thrilling prospect to help these struggling missionaries and strengthen the global church. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:21

Respectfully,
Kim Saum