Homeward: The Life of Lan Nguyen

In this spiritual autobiography, Lan Nguyen recalls how amid her lifelong search for truth, safety, and a stable home, she fled late-1970s Vietnam by perilous boat journey on open seas with her husband and seven children, and had a powerful encounter with Christ who came to reveal Himself in a most surprising place to change the course of her life forever. From childhood in the South Central Vietnamese highlands, through adult years when she and her husband struggled to feed and house their family in the midst of a war-torn country, to their dramatic escape only to endure a long wait detained in a foreign refugee camp before release to travel to America, Lan's life has been one of frequent hardship, bleakness, and strife. Yet the great degree of suffering in her story is what makes her rare joys so moving: the joy of spiritual peace in the presence of her Savior, the joy of meeting a best friend from the other side of the world, and the joy of discovering great purpose in the call to missions as she and her husband minister even during their elderly years to those in their native land. Readers of this book will come away aware of some experiences of average Vietnamese citizens living at a number of locations of pivotal moments in the Vietnam War; informed about various Vietnamese places, aspects of culture, and changes from the time of Saigon during the war to the time of Ho Chi Minh City; understanding typical experiences of refugees and their dreams for their children; grateful for basic things like food, shelter, safety, and freedom; moved by this woman's dramatic story of salvation and by her love for Christ, whom she found so kind after living in a world characteristically harsh and indifferent. Ultimately, Homeward is a wake-up call. Though the conditions of her life were often far from fair, Lan does not refrain from honesty about her own flaws, mistakes, and sins. She shows us that there is a God who is patient, who cares, who wants to lead us through this world and save us from ourselves, and to use us to provide sound spiritual mentorship and guidance to others on their own journeys homeward.