Read or share the email edition or scroll down for more.
Source: Visual Capitalist
You may remember The World as 100 People. It went viral a few years back—a helpful attempt to explain who lives in our world according to a number of different categories.
Do you realize Earth’s population has doubled in size over the last 50 years, now exceeding 8 billion people? More than half of them live in Asia! If you represented the planet’s population as just 1,000 people, using UN data from mid-2023, you’d have 178 in India and 177 in China. Sweden and Honduras would be down to just one person each.
See how many would live on each continent and in each country with this interactive map and chart.
See also Gina Zurlo’s 2020 visualization of The World as 100 Christians (with data on Global Christianity).
Interested in the big picture? Find some food for thought in a brief article called Better Than You Think, in which Philip Yancey reflects on the message of Hans Roslin (author of the 2018 book Factfulness) about the state of the world.
Source: Pioneers-USA
Items May Have Shifted: When Missionaries Get Rerouted, by Maxine McDonald. Pioneers, 2023. 146 pages.
Many of the most popular missionary biographies paint a picture of heroic figures, often in primitive settings, who stay for many years and become beloved by the people. But things are different now. Pioneers found that half of its field workers who had served for ten years or more had lived in more than one country. Often they saw themselves as “lifers” with a one-way ticket to the first place on their hearts, but issues with visas, civil unrest, health, or family needs took them somewhere they never expected. So, how do they navigate that? What’s it like?
Hear four American missionary couples and a single woman, all serving with Pioneers, tell their stories in Items May Have Shifted.
This book is currently available in three formats. Help yourself to the one that fits your budget and reading preferences.
Disclaimer, I work for Pioneers and was part of the editorial team that created this book. It’s part of our ongoing effort to demystify missions for those who would go and those who send, that both might have a more accurate picture of what it takes and what it may look like to serve cross-culturally in today’s world.
Readers may be interested in a few other 2023 titles related to mission transition. We previously reviewed Grit to Stay Grace to Go, by Sue Eenigenburg and Eva Burkholder, and Liturgies and Laments for the Sojourner, by Alicia Boyce, Heather Fallis, and Tamika Rybinski. Another new book that caught my eye, though I haven’t read it, is Rerouted: Caring for Missionaries When Unexpected Trials Bring Them Home.
Sources: Various
Recently on the Global Missions Podcast
Rob Magwood and his friends are great at highlighting helpful resources for church mission leaders and others. In the last few episodes:
Listen to these episodes and more.
Preparing to Go
Many of us learn about self-care the hard way. Looking back, a veteran missionary offers some solid advice to those preparing to go.
Read 7 Steps to Prepare for Christian Missions (Sarita Hartz).
Preparing to Send
Another new article argues that churches do the future missionary and the church a disservice if they make the sending process too easy or give in to pressures to send out those they aren’t sure are ready to go.
Read Should Your Missions Pipeline Run Uphill? (Catalyst Services).
Finally, a Dark Side of Church Mobilization
Maybe you’ve seen how hard it can be to build a healthy partnership between church and parachurch (some say “parasite”) groups. One reason? They have different goals. When it comes to missions, the typical church is most interested in seeing their people engaged—an inward focus. And that may drive mission priorities more than it should.
Read Misaligned Mission Musings (Ted Esler).
Source: OSCAR
Maybe you’re done decking the halls, shopping for your nearest and dearest, and shipping those glittery cards and thoughtful care packages to ministry partners who are far from home this Christmas. In case you’re not, browse the Christmas page from OSCAR, a UK-based mission information source. It includes Christmas items you can buy to support mission efforts, alternative gift ideas, and other links.
Visit OSCAR’s Christmas page and read an article from last year on Supporting Missionaries at Christmas.
Source: Missions Catalyst Events Calendar
December 6-7, Denominational Roundtable for Mission Leaders (Greenville, SC, USA). An annual networking event organized by Missio Nexus.
December 7, Developing Movement Catalysts: It’s Within Your Reach (online). Webinar from Missio Nexus.
December 10, Virtual Prayer Gathering: Call to Prayer (online). Monthly event for members of Missio Nexus.
December 11-13, Support Raising Bootcamp (online). Provided by Via, formerly Support Raising Solutions. More classes held online or in person in various locations throughout the year.
December 14, The Details Matter: How a Project Manager Can Help Reduce Your Workload (online). Webinar for mission communication and marketing staff. Provided by Missio Nexus.
December 19, Contend: Monthly Day of Prayer for Mission Mobilization (global). Coordinated by GMMI for the third Tuesday of each month.
View the complete calendar, updated regularly. Submissions welcome.
Read or share the email edition or scroll down for more.
Source: Missio Nexus
Essentials for People Care and Development, edited by Heather Pubols and Geoff Whiteman, Missio Nexus, 2023. 222 pages.
Whether you serve in a sending agency, lead a ministry, or are a concerned pastor or care provider, you’ll find something in this book to help you care for global workers.
It’s a slim book but includes 14 articles from 15 authors serving in a variety of contexts, though most are in professional member-care roles. Each provides reflections and recommendations rooted in scripture and research. Footnotes and resource recommendations will help you go deeper if you like.
Learn more, get the ebook edition for US $14.95, or find the paperback on Amazon.
You might also appreciate an interview with a member care provider on the latest episode of the Relentless Pursuit Podcast (Pioneers-USA). After sharing her own somewhat painful story, she talks about what she’s learned about the interplay of suffering and spiritual growth.
Source: Global Frontier Missions
Remember GFM’s short teaching videos on mission topics like the biblical basis for missions, what makes a group unreached, the state of the world, and more? You may have seen or shared them in a missions class or used them with your church or small group.
But say you wanted to share them in another, non-English-speaking context. You may be in luck. These videos have been translated into Russian, Vietnamese, Swahili, and Portuguese.
Take a look. Thanks, GFM!
See also a collection of short videos defining and exploring what the producers call difficult mission terms (Lausanne Movement). They unpack words like polycentric, missio Dei, evangelical, and ecumenical.
Sources: Various
Help This Person
“Don’t take my word for it. Instead, for the rest of the day, try thinking ‘help this person’ every time you interact with another human being.”
Read Three Words That Will Transform Your Career (Bruce Kasanoff).
Have This Conversation
“When you’re thinking about serving in missions, inviting your pastor or church leader into your journey from the beginning can be an invaluable source of encouragement and wisdom. But how do you start?”
Read 7 Questions to Ask Your Pastor When You’re Thinking About Missions (Wycliffe Bible Translators).
Fear of Failure
“What if I don’t feel qualified to be a missionary? What should I do?”
Read What If I Don’t Feel Qualified to Be a Missionary? (Global Frontier Missions).
Growing Passion for the Nations
“The church members most involved in missions become those most excited about missions. Engagement in missions drives excitement about missions.”
Read 10 Ways to Develop a Missions Culture in Your Church (ABWE).