As I looked at this blank page before I began to write this letter I felt waves of emotions. I felt excitement, sadness, joy, grief, hope, fear, strength, weakness, confidence, insecurity, and now, peace. This letter brings a sense of finality to months of intense turmoil in our hearts to determine God’s direction for our family’s ministry assignment. From the moment this letter is sent there is no turning back. I stared at the blankness and just began to pray, praying a different prayer than I’ve been recently praying. I was no longer praying for myself, my family, our team, nor our work. I prayed for you, the recipient. Some of you reading this are deeply ingrained in our lives and our ministry. To some this letter will be shocking and to others not so much. Some of you have been in prayer for us as we made this decision and provided counsel knowing what we are facing. Some of you have been praying for us not knowing what is on our hearts but knowing that we need your prayers. Thank you for loving our family so well. Thank you for magnifying our Lord as you have toiled and strived with us for the glory of God to be declared among the nations. My prayer for you all is that you receive this letter with joy and peace, and that it results in joining us in praise to our King.
The time has come for our family to begin the process of leaving Uganda and return to our “home” in Chipley. We plan to return just before Christmas this year. Until a few months ago I wasn’t sure that this time would ever come, nor did I want it to. As I thought of our future I assumed excitedly that God would keep us in foreign lands for most, if not all of the remainder of our life. As we came to the US for our stateside assignment there was no doubt in my mind that we would return to Uganda for many more years of work. Never in my life have I felt more fulfilled in my work than I have over the past 5 years. Our work there is seeing some very exciting momentum. God is doing massive things among our Ugandan and South Sudanese friends. Lives and eternities are being changed. The Church is growing bigger and deeper. However, as we spent time in the US I began to feel something shifting in my heart. It was not that my desire for our work in Uganda was any less, but that a desire for a different ministerial work was beginning to come to life and that my family needs dictated a shift as the family head.
In the US, I began to see the needs to the American church in ways that I had never seen them before. A burden was growing on my heart for the church and other people in my home culture. I’ve said to pastors many times, that the work in the south is much harder work than sharing the gospel in unreached people groups or even post Christian areas, because most know some of the gospel and think they are saved when in fact many are not. I know many in this state and of course desire for them to know Christ, but I never felt that God had placed that burden on me as my main assignment. The Holy Spirit has now placed that burden on my heart. God has burdened me with a desire for the Church around Chipley, a desire to preach the gospel and to help lead the local church into the work of the Great Commission at home and abroad. I am not yet sure what this will look like, but we are open to God placing us in whatever church or capacity he desires for us to join with in carrying out our calling in this way.
As a husband and father, my family is my number one discipleship priority. This leadership and discipleship assignment never changes. What can change is how this is carried out. As you know some of our children have loved their life in Uganda and some have not. I’ve always tried not to allow my family’s nor my own happiness in circumstance to dictate life decisions. This is true even now. However, I do have a God given responsibility to lead my family in and through God’s grace. Through much counsel we are sure that it is the right time to bring our children “home.” God has blessed us with 4 great kids. The ones who don’t love missionary life as much still have a Godly understanding of why their life has been this way. With different children come differences in the way that we meet their physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. So without going into the details of a great many events and conversations with our kids we know that it is best to meet some of these needs at “home.” Probably the most major factor with my family is that I can’t lead them well into the hard parts of missionary work when I’m not 100% convinced that God wants me there. So, when you combine a sense of assignment being different with discipling my children I would fail at both. I know that I cannot be a good leader when it comes from insecurity so I know that I must be sure that I am where God wants me to be.
Our hands have been and remain open to God. We surrender ourselves to Him, willing to go wherever he leads. If you heard me preach over the last few months you would have heard me talk about being “willing servants.” You would have heard me say, “To a sovereign God our [earthly] destination doesn’t matter. What matters is that we willingly go on the journey. Because, in the journey is where we are perfected.” We make plans and have destinations in mind. Sometimes God doesn’t take us there, but we can know that He is the one directing our steps. We remain His willing servants and we thank God for each of you that are on the journey with us. God has worked tremendously in our hearts over these years in Uganda. I would never have wanted anything different. The work in Uganda is tremendously beautiful, challenging, and necessary. The work will continue because it is God’s and not mine. As I think about leaving Uganda I am profoundly grief stricken and yet hopeful. As I think about coming “home” I am bursting with excitement and yet fearful of the unknown. But, what is known is that God is sovereignly on His throne, He is so good, and He is wise. What is known always overcomes the fear of what is not and is my hope through the grief.
You may be wondering what is next for you in this case. We still need your prayers. We have always known of your prayers for us. They have been a tremendous encouragement. I could not overstate the importance. Paul asked the Roman church to strive with him in prayer. I ask you to keep striving with us by the authority of Christ and in the love of the Holy Spirit. Here are some ways that you can pray.
- Our hearts during transition
- A local ministry assignment, no matter what full time work I engage in
- Gainful employment around Chipley for me and Mallory (This may be ministerial or it may not. I’m leaving that up to God’s direction)
- Physical provision as we restart our life and home (vehicles, insurance, etc.)
- Our teammates and the continued work of Four Corners
- The hearts of our African friends as they grieve
For those of you who have and are financially supporting us, I weep as I write this, remembering how God has been so faithful to us through you. There is nothing I can say or do that would be sufficient to thank you. You have sacrificed greatly for us and the kingdom of God. Upon our return we want to spend some time with you all. We want to tell you as much as we can remember about what your sacrifice has brought about. We want to answer your questions directly face to face. We want to embrace you physically as you have embraced us financially all these years. Not once have we had any need to worry about our financial ability to live and work. So, We ask that you contact Four Corners and stop your donations to our family immediately. We have plenty in our account to complete our time here. We would encourage you to continue supporting foreign missions. The Great Commission demands this of the Church. If you desire to keep supporting through Four Corners we have teammates that are continuing to work that we would recommend supporting or you could support the work that Four Corners is engaged in by directly giving to specific ministries or the general fund. To stop or re-direct your monthly support please contact Four Corners. I will place their contact information at the end of this letter.
For all of you that have supported our missionary work over the past 8 years from Atlanta through Uganda in so many various ways, you are a part of us forever. We have prayed for you so many times that there is no way for you not to be. I am overwhelmed every time I think of you. There are people all over the world today that you have impacted. There are people in heaven today that are there because of your investment in gospel work. You may know some of them, I know many, yet there are some that you nor I will know in this life. If the Lord tarries there will be generations of people that will join us around the throne simply because you were obedient to God and His Word. I cannot with words overemphasize how greatly God has used you. We will not see it completely until this earth passes away, and oh!, what a day that will be. We will be with people that on earth are completely unlike us but in the New Heaven and New Earth we will be joined together for one purpose. We will exalt our king forever with those God has saved for us and through us. To God be the glory forever.
For His Glory,
Allen & Mallory Corbin
Bo, Laurabeth, Lucas, and Annamarie
P.S. If you have questions or want to talk with me feel free to reach out anytime. You can email, message, FaceTime, WhatsApp, or call.
– allen@fourcorners.org – Email
– allen_corbin@hotmail.com – iMessage, FaceTime, Email
– +256 706562994 – Call, WhatsApp, iMessage, FaceTime
For donation changes and/or inquiries
Corbin Family 