PMPod

Today on the Pod, I talk to a woman who has been in cross-cultural missions for longer than I’ve been alive. There is a depth of maturity and wisdom that only time and experience can give you, and she has it. Prepare for a blessing. 

"The Lord doesn’t owe us anything, but we owe our whole lives to him."

Here is my conversation with my guest's husband, #29 Fifty Years in Missions

Read more and find quotes from today's episode  at Pmpod.org 

Timeline

• 00:00 Intro 
• 00:59 Getting called at 13 years old 
• 03:45 Missions in the 70s 
• 06:22 Persecution and imprisonment 
• 10:30 Overcoming cynicism 
• 12:10 How to pray on the field 
• 15:10 Spiritual longevity 
• 18:10 Prayer in missions 
• 21:35 Grief on the field 
• 28:40 The costs of being on the field
• 32:40 The cost for local believers 
• 39:40 The cost for extended families 
• 42:55 Changes in missions 
• 46:50 Who would you want on your team? 
• 49:45 Being a mother on the field 
• 56:00 Do it all to the Glory of God 

Today on the pod, I talk to a Christ-centered woman with a lot of experience in cross-cultural ministry, transition, dealing with difficult people, and finding peace with God through it all. 

"All the terrible things, all the wonderful things, but Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. It’s all about Jesus. Everything I’m doing, it’s all about Jesus. Everything that we get to be a part of, it’s all about Jesus."

Read more at Pmpod.org 

Timeline

• 00:00 Intro
• 01:00 Getting into missions
• 03:20 Called to the Muslim World
• 06:20 The benefits of singles on the field
• 10:10 Leading as a single
• 13:48 Leading as a woman
• 17:50 Turning your eyes to Jesus
• 19:35 Staying Spiritually healthy
• 26:25 Changing counties and languages
• 33:04 Ministry never looks like you want it to
• 35:05 The importance of prayer
• 42:05 Experiencing despair and the gift of joy
• 46:45 Resting on the field 
• 55:25 Dealing with failure
• 1:01:00 A final thought

Today on the pod, my guest shares with us the wisdom and insights she has accumulated over 33 years in missions. Our conversation is deep, thought provocating, and full of laughs at the same time. 

"There was a season in my life where I was like, “God, I’m fed up selling something that I don’t have myself.” Until you change something in my heart, this whole evangelism thing is on hold."

Read more at pmpod.org

Timeline 

• 00:00 Intro 
• 01:00 The impact of a short-term team
• 04:14 Misconceptions and missions 
• 05:35 From personnel to the field 
• 11:54 Building your own job description 
• 16:35 The worker and their identity  
• 23:20 The inner voice of the missionary 
• 28:10 Seasons of darkness and doubt  
• 31:40 Examining your faith  
• 40:16 What rest should look like 
• 46:00 Costs and benefits of singleness 
• 50:57 Singleness through the decades 

I think the longer you stay out on the field the lonelier it gets. 

Today on the pod, your host gets interviewed by his guest. It was very humbling to be on the other side of the microphone and be challenged to think with many good questions. We talked about the challenge of multiple expectations from different directions on the cross-cultural worker, as well as loneliness, turnover, the danger of chasing fads, and much more.

To learn more, go to pmpod.org

Timeline 

• 00:00 Intro
• 01:08 Challenging expectations
• 07:00 Chasing fads
• 11:41 The Western church and our methods
• 15:05 Motivating passion for missions 
• 19:25 Dangers of being on the field too long
• 27:21 Dealing with cynicism
• 30:09 Getting out of your comfort zone
• 33:49 Turnover and trauma
• 40:23 How the field changes you
• 50:35 Advice you would give your younger self
• 54:50 A single gives advice to marrieds
• 58:12 The future of missions
• 1:04:19 Called, gifted, enjoyment

Constantly striving to get better doesn’t mean you don’t take rest 

Today on the Pod, we cover a lot of topics like the drive to learn and grow over your lifetime, having mentors, good comparison vs bad comparison, having fun, resting well, learning to be outward focused, tent-making, doing aid and development, transitioning off the field with kids, and more! If anything of these topics interests you, you are going to love this episode.

Find out more at pmpod.org

Timeline 

• 00:00 Introduction
• 01:00 The impact of others
• 05:00 Mentors and disciples 
• 9:13 Mission Creep 
• 11:32 Good comparison 
• 15:10 Striving and resetting 
• 18:20 Having fun on the field 
• 21:30 Beneath the surface needs 
• 26:25 Encourage others 
• 30:40 Why are missionaries tired all the time? 
• 32:11 The upshot of tent-making
• 38:05 Development as missions 
• 43:50 Transitioning off the field and kids 
• 50:00 Everyone leaves the field 

I interviewed my guest's wife in episode  56; check it out What You Model You Reproduce. 

It’s not just preaching that’s the problem; it’s also the prayerlessness in the pew.

Today on the Pod, I talked to a pastor about the importance of preaching and called ministers in missions and the church. Is preaching still meaningful for the church in the 21st century? Is the old model of training pastors too slow and clunky to reach the world? When are monolog preaching and question-and-answer style Bible study applicable? These questions and many more are taken up on today’s podcast. I hope you enjoy it.

Email my guest at [email protected]

Read more and find links to the resources here   

Timeline 

• 00:00 Introduction 
• 03:32 Naïve and ignorant 
• 06:10 Why is preaching so bad? 
• 09:28 What should preaching be?
• 12:24 The history of preaching 
• 17:40 Is preaching still meaningful today? 
• 22:32 The value of monologue preaching 
• 27:00 What are the Means of Grace?
• 32:18 Pietistic problems 
• 36:31 People need to pray 
• 43:03 What is Biblicism?  
• 49:20 Why do we hate authority? 
• 51:15 The value of theological education 
• 54:20 Is your model too slow and clunky?
• 57:30 Why these questions? 

Numbers are helpful, but they’re not the holy grail.

Today on the Pod, I had a very insightful conversation with a guy about calling, marriage on the field, transition, integrating into local culture, when counting numbers is good, and a whole lot more.

"If you feel called to a people or a region, and you want to live out Christ, then you better emerge yourself more with the locals than with the ex-pats."

Read more at Pmpod.org

Timeline 

00:00 Intro 

01:03 Coming to faith 

03:45 Getting involved in missions 

12:40 What keeps you in missions?

15:40 Never wanting to quite 

18:20 Serving as a couple 

23:44 The role of team 

25:50 Balancing relationships 

30:15 Transition 

36:50 How to make re-entry better

42:23 The value of mission organizations

49:30 What are healthy ways to count numbers? 

Isolation is paralyzing for MBBs

Today on the Pod, we talk about the messy realities of discipleship. When someone comes to faith on the field, we often think it’s all going to be up and to the right from now on. But in reality, the messiness begins the moment that person places his faith in Jesus. The whole episode today is about discipleship, and I think you’re really going to like it.

Find links to the resources mentioned in the Pod here

"I think what is very problematic and very impairing is when a believer lives in two different worlds. In secret, he’s a believer, and he has fellowship with other believers, but out in the open, he has to play the role of not being a believer or being labeled an atheist be he doesn’t go to the mosque or pray."

Timeline 

• 00:00 Intro 
• 01:04 How the Devil attacks MBBs 
• 06:52 Taking fear seriously 
• 12:28 Signs of maturity in an MBB
• 20:18 How should MMBs read the Bible? 
• 26:27 Stop over-pressuring MBBs 
• 36:20 Signs of Spiritual drift 
• 48:02 Gospel vs obedience 
• 53:55 Resources and recommendations   

I don’t want missions to be just another program.

Today on the Pod, I talk to a mission’s pastor about how he tries to advocate for missions in the local church. We have a fascinating conversation about how he prioritizes global missions in his church and some of the things that missionaries can do to make his job easier. 

Read more at pmpod.org

"You can make time for missions in your church if it's a priority." 

Timeline 

• 00:00 Introduction 
• 01:55 Leaving the business world 
• 06:00 Priorities of a missions pastor 
• 11:00 Ways to incorporate missions into the church
• 15:10 Incorporating missions into children’s ministry 
• 20:00 Relationship between church and missionary 
• 26:06 What are you looking to hear from missionaries? 
• 24:43 What’s it like when missionaries ask for money? 
• 38:38 How do you prioritize your mission budget?