Welcome to the New World - ReImagining Missions

by Ben Tobias, Director of Global Reach

“Oh wow, missionaries fight lions!” When I was a child in the 1970s, my parents had a collection of stories on LPs, and my favorite was the story of the famous Scottish explorer/ missionary David Livingstone (1813-1873). He was famous for the many years he spent in the African interior, and his exploits were eagerly followed by Victorian England. The dramatized story of his being attacked by a lion in 1843 had the same effect on me as it did over 100 years earlier in England: I was hooked by the idea of missionaries risking their lives in dangerous jungles with a machete in one hand and a Bible in the other. Livingstone was followed by hundreds of European and North American Protestant missionaries in what has been called “the Golden Age of Missions,” an era lasting through the 19 th century until WWI that saw the establishment of pioneer mission fields in Africa, Asia, South America, and the South Pacific.

It was during this time that Miss Clara Landes became the first Churches of God missionary in 1898, and since then the CGGC has seen cross-cultural missions multiply in Bangladesh, Haiti, the Navajo Nation, Brazil, Venezuela, Kenya, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Nicaragua, Argentina, Chile, and Thailand. We’ve sent missionaries to work in Sweden and Indonesia, and local congregations have supported many affiliate missionaries serving in South Africa, the Philippines, Japan, Uganda, etc. For a small denomination, we’ve had an outsized impact! I’m incredibly grateful for the generosity of so many churches and individuals who regularly give to support ongoing ministries as well as to bless in times of crisis. For example, in 2021 Global Reach received over $945,000 in donations to support ongoing ministries, and that doesn’t include the almost $100,000 raised for emergency COVID-19 relief given in 2020 and 2021.

The romantic figure of a western missionary trekking through the jungle isn’t exactly accurate anymore. Things have changed in a BIG way since David Livingstone and the “Golden Age.” In some ways, though, we’re still in the “Golden Age,” but for different reasons. All around the world, cross-cultural missionaries are ministering in every country, from every country. This means that the USA – like most other countries – is both sending and receiving missionaries. The nations that were evangelized in the 19 th century have matured to the point of sending missionaries themselves. That’s great news! But it doesn’t mean that the CGGC has “retired” from missions-engagement. It does mean that we need to re-imagine what our obedience to Christ’s command to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) looks like.

As we re-imagine missions, I want to highlight three major shifts taking place in Global Reach.

1. National Field Leaders are now leading all of our international fields. This started happening in the 1980s when the last American missionaries – Dan and Marlene Fortney – left Bangladesh in 1984, and most recently when Mike and Dawn VanDervort left Haiti in November 2021. This means that missionaries have worked themselves out of a job in India, Bangladesh, Brazil, and Haiti – and national leaders are now in charge of each of those fields. Some of our fields – Kenya and Latino fields – have never had expatriate (away from home country) missionaries. While this is a sign of remarkable success, it does present a few challenges. Namely, most of these leaders are serving as pastors or have secular employment in addition to their field leadership role, so they are especially stretched for time. Furthermore, they tend to lack direct access to US-based donors and supporters, unlike traditional expatriate missionaries. For this reason, we have created support accounts for the national field leaders, and we hope to “stand in the gap” and promote their ministries through newsletters, digital media, and regional missions events.

2. International travel is increasingly difficult. Whether it’s due to the pandemic or political instability, the past few years have seen a sharp decline in short-term mission teams. Nevertheless, we’re hoping that intergenerational ACTS Teams will rebound, and team members will bless their hosts as well as experience spiritual growth that happens when we work side-by-side with cross-cultural friends. Shortterm teams need to be very intentional in how and where they travel. Also, because it’s difficult to bring international guests to the USA, we’ve developed the “Virtual Summit,” a quarterly event of hearing directly from missionaries and field leaders via Zoom. This is a great opportunity for individuals and church groups to interact with Global Reach friends from around the world!

3. Global Reach Partners seek stronger connections. Several churches and organizations are making significant investments in specific fields, and the goal is to foster strong Christ-based relationships – not just send financial support. We’ve had the Sister Church and School ministry between Haiti and the USA for a long time now, but we want to extend this concept to all fields. To this end we’re developing a cohort of Global Reach Partners who will learn the best practices of cross-cultural friendship.

Perhaps you’ve noticed some common themes in these three shifts. On the one hand, we’re experiencing more distance from various fields, primarily because of the absence of US missionaries and difficulty in travel. But on the other hand we’re seeing more connections via digital technology and bigger investment of time and finances.

What does this mean for the local church and individual believer? First of all, Jesus still commands us to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) and to be His witnesses “to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Regardless of how much our world changes, our mission hasn’t and never will. But we do need to reimagine what obedience to His command looks like, just as I needed to change my David Livingstone missionary model.

Here are some practical suggestions for “reimagining missions”:

1. Embrace “both/and” instead of “either/or.” Missions is BOTH local AND global. Missionaries are both home-grown AND international. Ministry is BOTH spiritual AND physical. Mission support is BOTH financial AND relational (i.e. prayer, communications, personal presence).

2. Start young. Build missions into discipleship starting at the earliest ages. Encourage children, teens, and young adults to see the world from God’s perspective and provide them opportunities to experience cross-cultural ministry opportunities.

3. Develop a prayer ministry devoted to global mission. Utilize the Global Advocate Prayer Calendar, missionary newsletters, Global Reach updates, videos, etc. to stay up to date. Incorporate these prayers into congregational worship and/or a separate prayer time outside the worship service.

So much more can be said! We at Global Reach would love to have an opportunity to visit your church, regardless of size or location. Please contact GR Director Ben Tobias (BTobias@cggc.org) or GR Assistant Director Travis Helm (Travis@cggc.org) if you would like to schedule a visit.