Next Steps Module

“I desire to go overseas, but I have a family and I’m not sure about raising my kids overseas”. “I desire to go overseas, but I’m scared about the safety of my family”. If these sound like you, you are not alone. It is a big decision taking your family overseas, committing to raise your children in another language, culture, and context. These resources will hopefully help bring confidence and clarity to conversations about your desire to move your family and serve overseas.

Articles:

Team | “Raising Young Kids Overseas”

Team | “Raising Up Healthy Missionary Kids”

Radical | “Raising Normal Missionary Kids”

Desiring God | “Risk Your Kids for the Kingdom?”

Christianity Today | “I’m Not Called to Keep my Kids from Danger”

IMB | “Parents: Prepare Your Children for Missions, Even When It’s Risky”

Go Serve Love | “We were Missionary Kids, Here’s What our Parents Did Right”

Go Serve Love | “8 Ways to Help Your Family Flourish Overseas”

Blog | A Life Overseas

Books:

Misunderstood: The Impact of Growing up Overseas in the 21st Century, by Tanya Crossman

Third Culture Kids: Growing up Among Worlds, by Pollock, Pollock, and Van Reken

Belonging Everywhere & Nowhere: How to Counsel the Globally Mobile, by Lois Bushong

Missional Motherhood: The Everyday Ministry of Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God, by Gloria Furman

Resources:

Team | Missionary Kid Education Plan

Reaching & Teaching | Third Culture Kid Care

“I desire to go overseas, but my family doesn’t support me going”. “I want to be a missionary in the Middle East but my parents aren’t believers and they don’t understand why I would use my life to live in a dangerous place”. If these sound like you, you are not alone. Family support can be a major barrier to many going overseas as long-term missionaries. These resources will hopefully help bring confidence and clarity to hard conversations about your desire to serve overseas with your loved ones.

Pray:

The most influential thing you can do for your parents is pray. We cannot change the hearts of others, but God can. As you prepare to have these conversations with your parents and even after you have had those conversations, pray that as God moves your heart toward missions and the unreached, He would move the hearts of your loved ones too.

Articles:

IMB | “My Parents Don’t Want Me to be a Missionary”

The Traveling Team | “Honoring your Parents as you enter into Ministry”

Team | “How to Honor your Parents when You’re Called to Missions”

Ask A Missionary | “What if my Parents Oppose me Becoming a Missionary?”

Books:

Scaling the Wall: Overcoming Obstacles to Missions Involvement, by Kathy Hicks

“I desire to serve overseas but I also want to be married. Can I be a missionary as a single person?” The answer to this question is, yes! The life of a missionary is not one marked by your relationship status, but a faithfulness to step into what God has for you. God works through all kinds of people to do all kinds of things for his kingdom.

Articles:

Reaching & Teaching | “Should Missionaries Be Married or Single?”

IMB | “If Mr. Right Never Comes Along: A Single Woman on the Mission Field”

OMF | “Five Pieces of Advice for Single Men Looking to Get Involved in Missions”

A Life Overseas | “Dear Single Missionary”

The Gospel Coalition | “Singleness with Purpose”

OMF | “Your Value in Missions is not Dependant on Your Relationship Status”

Books:

On Being a Missionary (Revised), by Thomas Hale and Gene Daniels

7 Myths about Singleness, by Sam Allberry

A Chance to Die, by Elisabeth Elliott

Not Yet Married, by Marshall Segal

“Debt is often the first thing to prevent people from missions…”. One of the major barriers to getting overseas is debt. Credit cards, houses, cars, and student loans act as anchors to the life culture wants us to live and getting rid of these barriers can free you up to serve overseas without burden.

Do You Have Debt?

Financial Peace University | Dave Ramsey’s curriculum and systems can be a helpful tool in getting out of debt and freeing up yourself to serve overseas as a missionary.

Do You Have Student debt?

The Go Fund | 3.23 billion people have no access to the gospel. Our mission is to eliminate barriers to advance the Gospel to the unreached. The Go Fund pays 100% of student debt for approved missionaries.

Medsend | At MedSend, we offer two types of grants for those who wish to serve as Christian medical missionaries. The first is for US residents who have completed their medical training and are ready to commit to long-term missions. The second type of grant is for students abroad who wish to further their medical  training and intend to serve in-country as Christian medical missionaries.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness| If you are employed by a U.S. federal, state, local, or tribal government or not-for-profit organization, you might be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. This program is not for everyone, but some may qualify for some portions of loan forgiveness.

*Note: “What is Considered Full-Time Employment?”

Resources:

Dave Ramsey | “Ministering to the World – Unhindered”. Dave Ramsey’s curriculum and systems can be a helpful tool in getting out of debt and freeing up yourself to serve overseas as a missionary.

The Traveling Team | “Obstacles to Mission: Debt”

“Am I too young to be a missionary?” “I want to use my 20’s well and go overseas, but I feel like I am too young”. “My spouse and I just retired, are we too old to go to the mission field?”. God can use anyone from any walk of life, at any age for his kingdom. These resources will hopefully help bring confidence and clarity to conversations about your desire to serve overseas no matter if you’re about to graduate college or enter into retirement.

Articles:

Reaching & Teaching | “The Benefits and Challenges of Being a 20-Something Overseas”

The Traveling Team | “Young People and Global Mission”

IMB | “Your Church’s Children Can (and Should) Be Involved in Missions”

Global Outreach | “Don’t Let Age Limit Your Life on Mission”

Resources:

GO IMPACT for Youth Groups (IMB) | Is your church youth group ready to experience the nations and offer help and hope through the gospel to people around the world? IMB is ready to serve you and your church with packaged short-term missions opportunities. GO IMPACT offers 1 and 2-week international mission trips for high school youth groups.

If you struggle with pornography, you are not alone. Many men and women struggle with sexual sin and desire to be missionaries among the nations. These resources are helpful steps for you or someone you know to gain freedom from sexual sin and serve God as a missionary without burden.

Articles:

The Gospel Coalition | “F.L.E.E – A Strategy for Pursuing Sexual Purity”

The Gospel Coalition | “Pornology”

Desiring God | “Sexual Sin in Ministry”

Covenant Eyes | “Counseling Single Men (and Men in General) Toward Lasting Freedom from Pornography”

Books:

Finally Free, by Heath Lambert

Sexual Detox, by Tim Challies

Your Brain on Porn, by Covenant Eyes (E-Book)

Resources:

Talk to someone you trust, Tell your pastor | Fighting sin is not something God intended us to do alone. Although it may be extremely difficult, the first step to fighting sexual sin is to invite someone you know and trust to hold you accountable.

Covenant Eyes App | Covenant Eyes is designed to help you and those you love live free from pornography through transformative accountability relationships.

Covenant Eyes | Porn Free Church: Resources for Pastors

God has given believers the Church as a reminder of who we are and whose we are, to encourage growth in one another, to spend time in fellowship with one another, and to remind us of our living hope. Finding a local church to plug into can be a weary process for some.

These resources should help you search for a church in your area and decide where to plug in with other believers in your area.

Articles:

Desiring God | “How do I Find a Good Church?”

Desiring God | “Why Should I Go to Church?”

Find a Church Near You:

Church Finder | 9 Marks

Church Finder | The Gospel Coalition

Church Finder | Church Finder

Do you know someone who is a missionary and you want to care for them well? Does your church desire to care for the missionaries they have sent out well? These resources and articles explore how you or your church can care for missionaries and their families well.

Resources:

IMB | Missionary Care

TEAM | Missionary Care Plan

Send Care Packages | Missionaries don’t just need prayer and funding. They need to feel loved—tangibly. Tangible gifts—such as care packages—export Christian edification to those far from home. Just as grandma’s cookies remind you of home, care packages from supporting churches remind us of the aroma of our heavenly home with Christ.

Ideas for Care Packages – TEAM, ABWE

Articles:

Reaching & Teaching | “How Can Sending Churches Care for Missionary Kids?”

IMB | “What If I Don’t Want My Child to Be a Missionary?”

Resonate Global | “8 Ways Your Congregation Can Care for Missionaries”

Missionary Kids:

Misunderstood: The Impact of Growing up Overseas in the 21st Century, by Tanya Crossman

Third Culture Kids: Growing up Among Worlds, by Pollock, Pollock, and Van Reken

Belonging Everywhere & Nowhere: How to Counsel the Globally Mobile, by Lois Bushong

Reaching & Teaching | Third Culture Kid Care

Do you desire to go overseas but need further training before you go? Having knowledge and skills under your belt before you go can be beneficial to your transition and life in ministry long-term, but it will also benefit the people you are going to serve.

Finances:

Go Serve Love | “A Missionary Budget: What Costs Does it Include?”

Dave Ramsey | “Ministering to the World – Unhindered”. Dave Ramsey’s curriculum and systems can be a helpful tool in getting out of debt and freeing up yourself to serve overseas as a missionary.

The Traveling Team | “Obstacles to Mission: Debt”

The God Ask, by Steve Shadrach

Hands-On Training:

International Student Inc. | International Students, Inc., exists to share Christ’s love with international college students. Do you want to play a big part in transforming the lives of international students? International students enjoy learning about American culture and building friendships with Americans. Join our global-impact team and make a difference in the life and destiny of an international student.

Send Relief Projects (North American Mission Board) | Engage the nations before you go overseas through the North American Mission Board’s Send Relief Projects. Learn agricultural training, put your nursing degree to use aiding refugees, or engage in evangelism in your city through ministry projects around the United States.

Radius International | Radius International is a 9 month training program for those desiring to become long-term cross-cultural church planters. Radius trains singles, couples, and families who are committed to long-term, pioneer church planting among unreached language groups. Radius students acquire spiritual, relational, emotional, and moral maturity, as well as the physical stamina that will enable them to survive the rigors of cross-cultural living.

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary involved with the task of starting a business in a country or people group that has little to no access to the Gospel? Connect with these organizations for more information on how you can use your degree and passion for business to advance the Gospel among the nations.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve in Business Development

Serve in Administration & Accounting

Serve in Communications & Media

Apply with ABWE

Christar | We exist because entire people groups still have no access to the transforming love of God. Boundaries and walls prevent people from hearing and worshiping, But God creates access. Christar workers participate by planting churches in these least-reached communities, where He is yet to be worshiped.

Start a Business

Apply with Christar

Disciple the Nations | Disciple the Nations exists to make disciples of all nations. To accomplish our goal, we partner with churches to send mature, growing disciples of Jesus Christ to the nations in order to mature and grow more disciples of Jesus Christ through the gospel.

Serve in business as mission or entrepreneurship, technology, and more.

Apply with Disciple the Nations

Pioneers | Pioneers empowers gospel-driven Christians to go to the ends of the earth together in relentless pursuit of the unreached. Whether in sprawling cities or rural villages, our teams make their homes in unreached contexts and learn new languages. They use innovative and creative means to build relationships and make disciples. They introduce people to the Bible and share the gospel in culturally understandable ways.

Serve in Business / Entrepreneurship

Serve in Media

Apply with Pioneers

Frontiers | Frontiers is working to fulfill the Great Commission by making disciples among Muslim peoples who don’t know the saving message of Jesus Christ. Our global priorities focus on the peoples and places with the least access to the Gospel. To this end, we work to recruit, train, and send teams of workers to live in Muslim communities and bring Christ’s message to those who have yet to hear it.

Serve among Muslim people groups.

Apply with Frontiers

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary involved with the tasks of community development, healthcare, or hands-on skills in a country or people group that has little to no access to the Gospel? Connect with these organizations for more information on how you can use your degree and passion for community development to advance the Gospel among the nations.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve in Compassion & Social Welfare Ministries

Serve on Construction Projects

Serve in Healthcare

Serve in Counseling

Apply with ABWE

Christar | We exist because entire people groups still have no access to the transforming love of God. Boundaries and walls prevent people from hearing and worshiping, But God creates access. Christar workers participate by planting churches in these least-reached communities, where He is yet to be worshiped.

Serve in Marketplace Ministries

Apply with Christar

Disciple the Nations | Disciple the Nations exists to make disciples of all nations. To accomplish our goal, we partner with churches to send mature, growing disciples of Jesus Christ to the nations in order to mature and grow more disciples of Jesus Christ through the gospel.

Serve in agriculture, arts, technology, healthcare, and more.

Apply with Disciple the Nations

Pioneers | Pioneers empowers gospel-driven Christians to go to the ends of the earth together in relentless pursuit of the unreached. Whether in sprawling cities or rural villages, our teams make their homes in unreached contexts and learn new languages. They use innovative and creative means to build relationships and make disciples. They introduce people to the Bible and share the gospel in culturally understandable ways.

Serve in Healthcare

Serve in Technology / Engineering

Apply with Pioneers

Frontiers | Frontiers is working to fulfill the Great Commission by making disciples among Muslim peoples who don’t know the saving message of Jesus Christ. Our global priorities focus on the peoples and places with the least access to the Gospel. To this end, we work to recruit, train, and send teams of workers to live in Muslim communities and bring Christ’s message to those who have yet to hear it.

Serve among Muslim people groups.

Apply with Frontiers

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary involved with the task of teaching in a country or people group that has little to no access to the Gospel? Connect with these organizations for more information on how you can use your degree and passion for teaching to advance the Gospel among the nations.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve in Education

Serve in Theological Education

Serve in Student Ministry

Apply with ABWE

Christar | We exist because entire people groups still have no access to the transforming love of God. Boundaries and walls prevent people from hearing and worshiping, But God creates access. Christar workers participate by planting churches in these least-reached communities, where He is yet to be worshiped.

Serve as a Teacher

Serve in Children’s Ministry

Apply with Christar

Reaching & Teaching | Reaching the peoples of the world through evangelizing, discipling, establishing churches, and training leaders. We are passionate about seeing the Gospel spread around the world through healthy local churches led by biblically-qualified pastors. We exist to meet the great need for deep discipleship, healthy churches, leadership training, and theological education around the world.

Serve as a Seminary Professor

Apply with Reaching & Teaching

Pioneers | Pioneers empowers gospel-driven Christians to go to the ends of the earth together in relentless pursuit of the unreached. Whether in sprawling cities or rural villages, our teams make their homes in unreached contexts and learn new languages. They use innovative and creative means to build relationships and make disciples. They introduce people to the Bible and share the gospel in culturally understandable ways.

Serve as a Teacher / Educator

Apply with Pioneers

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary involved with the specific task of translating the Bible into a language where there is no current Bible translated? Connect with these organizations for more information on how you can use your degree and passion for Bible Translation to advance the Gospel among the nations.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

Wycliff Bible Translators | No one should have to learn another language to understand God’s Word. And yet millions of people are still waiting for a single word of the Bible’s life-transforming power. Let’s help churches and communities around the world get Scripture in their language … until all the nations worship!

Serve in Bible Translation, Language Development, Scripture Engagement

Serve as a Translation Consultant

Serve in Aviation, taking scripture around the world.

Apply with Wycliff

Pioneer Bible Translators | Pioneer Bible Translators exists to disciple the Bibleless, mobilizing God’s people to provide enduring access to God’s Word. Our vision is to see transformed lives through God’s Word in every language. The work is not finished until there are networks of churches using Scripture to grow, mature and multiply in every language group on Earth.

Serve as a Translation Specialist

Serve as a Literacy Specialist

Serve as a Scripture Impact Specialist

Apply with Pioneer Bible Translation

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve in Translation

Apply with ABWE

Disciple the Nations | Disciple the Nations exists to make disciples of all nations. To accomplish our goal, we partner with churches to send mature, growing disciples of Jesus Christ to the nations in order to mature and grow more disciples of Jesus Christ through the gospel.

Serve in church planting, theological education, business as mission/entrepreneurship, agriculture, arts, technology, education, healthcare, and more.

Apply with Disciple the Nations

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary with the primary task of planting a church among an unreached people group? The following organizations offer opportunities in long-term missions work that are fully funded by the missionaries through personal support raising.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

To Every Tribe | The purpose of To Every Tribe is to see Jesus worshiped among all peoples. We believe this occurs at its fullest through indigenous local churches. As missionary teams are sent, it is our desire to see them do evangelism and disciple-making that leads to the formation of local churches that are healthy and reproducing. We seek to plant indigenous churches that are self-led, self-supporting, self-theologizing, and self-reproducing.

Serve in Church Planting

Apply with To Every Tribe

GSI (Global Serve International) | We are committed to the work of the Great Commission in the most challenging regions, no matter the cost, through cross-cultural church planting, making disciples, and the translation of God’s Word among people groups who currently have no access to the Gospel. We believe the church is God’s primary instrument of redemption in the world and has the leading role in His global story. We partner with churches locally and globally, united with one passion—to extend God’s glory among the nations.

Serve in the 10/40 Window: We work in 6 countries different within the 10/40 window. Unengaged people groups, worldview complexities, closed areas, and strong partner churches all play a part in where we choose to work. We focus on the hardest communities that still need their first access to the Gospel.

Apply with GSI

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve in Church Planting

Serve in the 10/40 Window

Serve in Evangelism & Discipleship

Apply with ABWE

Reaching & Teaching | Reaching the peoples of the world through evangelizing, discipling, establishing churches, and training leaders. We are passionate about seeing the Gospel spread around the world through healthy local churches led by biblically-qualified pastors. We exist to meet the great need for deep discipleship, healthy churches, leadership training, and theological education around the world.

Serve in Training & Discipleship

Serve as International Church Support

Apply with Reaching & Teaching

Do you have a sign language skill set and desire to serve as a long-term missionary serving among deaf people groups? The following organizations offer opportunities in long-term missions work that are fully funded by the missionaries through personal support raising.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

Christar | We exist because entire people groups still have no access to the transforming love of God. Boundaries and walls prevent people from hearing and worshiping, But God creates access. Christar workers participate by planting churches in these least-reached communities, where He is yet to be worshiped.

Serve among Deaf Peoples in the Middle East

Apply with Christar

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Serve among Deaf Peoples

Apply with ABWE

Funding: Long-term team members are missionaries who are fully funded by the IMB, and, as IMB employees, receive full benefits and services. Team Members are financially supported and enabled to devote their time to the missionary task. They do not raise support.

International Mission Board | The IMB partners with churches to empower limitless missionary teams who are making disciples and multiplying churches among unreached peoples and places for the glory of God. Our vision is to see a multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, knowing and worshiping our Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 7:9).

Serve among Deaf Peoples

Apply with the IMB

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary serving in roles such as teaching, church planting, starting a business, entrepreneurship, agriculture, arts, technology, healthcare, and more. The following organizations offer opportunities in long-term missions work that are fully funded by the missionaries through personal support raising.

Funding: Each of these organizations will ask you to raise your salary through the generosity of friends, families, and churches. You will receive training on how to raise support through each of these organizations.

Opportunities:

GSI (Global Serve International) | We are committed to the work of the Great Commission in the most challenging regions, no matter the cost, through cross-cultural church planting, making disciples, and the translation of God’s Word among people groups who currently have no access to the Gospel. We believe the church is God’s primary instrument of redemption in the world and has the leading role in His global story. We partner with churches locally and globally, united with one passion—to extend God’s glory among the nations.

Apply with GSI

Christar | We exist because entire people groups still have no access to the transforming love of God. Boundaries and walls prevent people from hearing and worshiping, But God creates access. Christar workers participate by planting churches in these least-reached communities, where He is yet to be worshiped.

Apply with Christar

ABWE (Association of Baptist for World Evangelism) | ABWE is a global family of ministries that exists to fulfill the Great Commission by multiplying leaders, churches, and missions movements among every people. We believe in doing the long, hard work of missions. We believe that the Great Commission means not only sharing the gospel but discipling new believers in the local church and helping biblical, healthy churches multiply and reach their own nations.

Apply with ABWE

Reaching & Teaching | Reaching the peoples of the world through evangelizing, discipling, establishing churches, and training leaders. We are passionate about seeing the Gospel spread around the world through healthy local churches led by biblically-qualified pastors. We exist to meet the great need for deep discipleship, healthy churches, leadership training, and theological education around the world.

Apply with Reaching & Teaching

Pioneers | Pioneers empowers gospel-driven Christians to go to the ends of the earth together in relentless pursuit of the unreached. Whether in sprawling cities or rural villages, our teams make their homes in unreached contexts and learn new languages. They use innovative and creative means to build relationships and make disciples. They introduce people to the Bible and share the gospel in culturally understandable ways.

Apply with Pioneers

Frontiers | Frontiers is working to fulfill the Great Commission by making disciples among Muslim peoples who don’t know the saving message of Jesus Christ. Our global priorities focus on the peoples and places with the least access to the Gospel. To this end, we work to recruit, train, and send teams of workers to live in Muslim communities and bring Christ’s message to those who have yet to hear it.

Apply with Frontiers

Do you desire to serve as a long-term missionary serving in roles such as teaching, church planting, starting a business, entrepreneurship, agriculture, arts, technology, healthcare, and more. The International Mission Board offers opportunities in long-term missions work that are fully funded by the IMB, not by the missionary through personal support.

Funding:

Long-term team members are missionaries who are fully funded by the IMB, and, as IMB employees, receive full benefits and services. Team Members are financially supported and enabled to devote their time to the missionary task. They do not raise support.

International Mission Board | The IMB partners with churches to empower limitless missionary teams who are making disciples and multiplying churches among unreached peoples and places for the glory of God. Our vision is to see a multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, knowing and worshiping our Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 7:9).

Opportunities:

Serve in North Africa / Middle East

Serve in Sub Saharan Africa

Serve in Central Asia

Serve in South Asia

Serve in Southeast Asia / Pacific Rim

Serve among Deaf Peoples

Apply with the IMB