Category: families

Marketplace Missions Myth #1: “Missions” is for missionaries (FREE assessment!)

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marketplace missionsDuring the month of September, Go. Serve. Love is tickled pink to share stories and thoughts from MDE, an organization providing business, vocational, missional, and personal services to fellow believers who want to make money and make disciples in unreached communities.

In light of the 4.13 billion unreached–and the need for the solution of an equal size–MDE is looking for Christians who truly want to be in the workplace, either as employees or entrepreneurs, and who truly want to be intentional about developing authentic relationships.

They’re looking for a few good men (and women) to take both the presence and the message of Jesus to co-workers and neighbors. read more

What You Need to Know: Muslim Social Pressure

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photo courtesy of imb.org

Ramadan began this week–and there’s still time to pray along with us (c’mon! Everybody’s doing it!) for the 1.8 billion Muslims around the world. So you’ll be seeing a little more from us about these painfully unreached people groups around this third rock of ours.

That’s why we’re honored that the International Mission Board has allowed us to reprint a super-informative article about community in Islam–one of the most significant obstacles to Muslims coming to Christ. read more

How to Tell Kids You’re Moving Overseas as Missionaries

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kids moving

“When Should We Tell Them?”

I’d say–and most sites agree–as soon as possible. Your goal is well-adjusted kids who have ownership in your decision, and who can eventually follow God courageously in their own life decisions.

If your kids keep secrets as well as mine did didn’t, I know it can be hard to discern (“What if they tell people in Sunday School and our cover is blown? We’re not ready to tell the whole church”). But even before you tell-them-tell-them, you can start planting seeds in your kids’ heads. read more

The Cultural Iceberg: What You Need to Know about Cross-cultural Communication

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cultural iceberg

We’re excited to welcome back Sheri of Engineering Ministries International. EMI mobilizes architects, engineers, construction managers, and other design professionals–including those through an incredible internship program–to provide design services for those helping the poor. We’re talking water projects, hospitals, schools, orphanages, you name it. Meanwhile, they raise up disciples and trained professionals in-country.

Sheri applies these cross-cultural points poignantly to the elements of designing cross-culturally–but we believe you’ll find inescapable parallels to any cross-cultural work. Hopefully it will help jumpstart real solutions for cross-cultural sensitivities, and help any culture manifest Jesus Christ according to its own cultural icebergs. read more

He Said/She Said. You Say? “Am I cut out for this? What kind of character do I need to be effective overseas?”

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It might come to mind as you’re taping another box shut, or when you’re about to pass one of those points-of-no-return: Selling your house. Selling your wheels for pennies on the dollar.

You might think, Well. If I go over there and bite it big time, this is going to be pretty embarrassing. Not to mention expensive.

(If you haven’t thought that? Just ignore those last two paragraphs.)

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Christmas, Rewrapped: How Moving Overseas May Mess with Your Holiday, Part II

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Missed the first part? Grab it here.

Scrolling through Facebook that day brought a bit of sadness, glimpsing all those photos of a white Christmas in Little Rock, of all places. I’d prayed for that so many times for my kids. Well, and myself.

But a few minutes later, I was playing Christmas music while I spread mayo for sandwiches. Some old lyrics belted out:Haul out the holly/ Put up the tree before my spirit falls again… And I realized, that was why I wanted to be there, enjoying the snow (not to mention the family!). I longed for the emotion of that holiday sparkle; the cozy magic that, with all the right elements, seems to frost everything with light and togetherness and fun, muting the rough edges. read more

Christmas, Rewrapped: How Moving Overseas May Mess with Your Christmas, Part I

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ChristmasYour first year overseas has a way of rearranging your life, your brain, your family, your body. So it makes sense your holidays would follow.

You may be wondering what Christmas looks like away from the lines to meet Santa, the obnoxious Black Friday ads–but also far from the welcoming hugs from mom, the family clustered around the tree or piano belting out carols.

My experience? Like most of overseas life, there were notable griefs and clarifying, memorable triumphs. Here, thoughts from my first Christmas season in Africa (edited from the original post on MomLifeToday.com). read more