The Missions Show

The early 2000’s wasn’t a prime time for Americans visiting the Middle East. But that’s when our guest, the son of a Kansas farmer, found himself called to the mission field in an undeniable way. On today’s episode, he shares stories of death-defying ministry to mullahs and how God used his ministry to plant the gospel in the surprisingly fertile soil of the Middle East—and how God is opening doors for business as mission today.

Don’t forget our sponsor, the Global Gospel Fund. We believe missionaries should be free to do the ministry they’re called to—not to waste precious ministry hours handling logistics. The Global Gospel Fund provides 1,000 missionaries across 70 countries with counsel, support, and a team of experts who know them by name. If you’re burdened for missions this giving season but don’t know where to start, we invite you to become a partner.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

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The early 2000’s wasn’t a prime time for Americans visiting Iraq. But that’s when Justin Carney, a son of a Kansas farmer, found himself called to the mission field in an undeniable way. On today’s episode, Justin shares stories of death-defying ministry to mullahs and how God used his ministry to plant the gospel in the surprisingly fertile soil of the Middle East—and how the literal soil of Iraq is opening doors for business as mission today.

Justin Carney is the Director of Business Development for FaithLink. If you’d like to get in touch with him, email [email protected] so we can protect his work in secure countries.

Don’t forget our sponsor, the Global Gospel Fund. We believe missionaries should be free to do the ministry they’re called to—not to waste precious ministry hours handling logistics. The Global Gospel Fund provides 1,000 missionaries across 70 countries with counsel, support, and a team of experts who know them by name. If you’re burdened for missions this giving season but don’t know where to start, we invite you to become a partner.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

Powered by ABWE International.

It’s the final week to enter our giveaway! As a way of thanking our loyal listeners, we’re giving away some great, free books and spiffy, new ABWE swag. Click here for details and to enter our drawing.

According to UNICEF, nearly 2 million girls are exploited/sold into the global sex trade each year—and 1 million of them are in India. To boot, Kolkata, the capitol of India’s West Bengal state, boasts what is arguably Asia’s biggest red light district. And that’s exactly where Smita Singh finds herself engaged in frontlines gospel ministry.

Smita is a global expert in rescuing trafficked girls from brothels and helping them build new futures. Smita, by profession, is a clinical psychologist, having worked with hundreds of victims of trafficking to help them rediscover their sense of self-worth. Smita is Director of Justice Initiatives for JKPS, which launched Mahima Homes to help trafficked girls and boys receive counseling, education and vocational training.

You can support the ministries of Smita and other JKPS partners through ABWE’s GAP program.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

Powered by ABWE International.

Announcement: It’s the show’s first birthday! As a way of thanking our loyal listeners, we’re giving away some great, free books and spiffy, new ABWE swag. Click here for details and to enter our drawing.

“It’s the economy, stupid.” Economics is complicated enough already, but injecting a Christian perspective adds a new layer. How do we think Christianly about economics? And specifically, how should missionaries think about economics—especially in that critical moment where they arrive in a new country and see poverty, corruption, or systemic injustices that are completely foreign (literally)?

To answer, we spoke with Dr. Matthew Arbo of Oklahoma Baptist University, where he serves as Assistant Professor of Theological Studies and Director of the Center for Faith and Public Life at Oklahoma Baptist University.

Dr. Arbo is the author of Political Vanity: Adam Ferguson on the Moral Tensions of Early Capitalism (Fortress Press, 2014) and, more recently, Walking Through Infertility: Biblical, Theological, and Moral Counsel for those who are Struggling (Crossway, 2018). His essays and articles on wide-ranging moral and political questions appear in several edited volumes and top-tier journals, including Political Theology, Studies in Christian Ethics, and the Evangelical Review of Society and Politics. Arbo is an active participant in the scholarly community, contributing as an invited panelist or presenter for conferences at Princeton University, University of Notre Dame, and Tyndale House (Cambridge), among others. He is a member of the American Academy of Religion, Society of Christian Ethics, and Evangelical Theological Society. Dr. Arbo is an appointed Research Fellow in Christian Ethics for the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

Arbo’s wife, Ashli, is an attorney and together they have two sons, Henry and James. The Arbo family are members of Frontline Church, Oklahoma City, where Matthew also serves as an elder. Follow Matt on Twitter. Dr. Arbo also recommended Oxford University Press’s Very Short Introductions.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

Powered by ABWE International.

Announcement: It’s the show’s first birthday! As a way of thanking our loyal listeners, we’re giving away some great, free books and spiffy, new ABWE swag. Click here for details and to enter our drawing.

What is God’s will for my life? Is God calling me to missions? Is there such a thing as a missionary calling—and if so, what is it? ABWE missionary to Ukraine Caleb Suko joins us this week to help us answer ten questions as it relates to the missionary call, desire, affirmation and counsel from loved ones, the local church, experience, prayer, opportunity, and more, based on his new book Is God Calling Me to Missions? 10 Questions to Help You Determine God’s Calling. 

Since 2007 Caleb has served as a missionary in Odessa, Ukraine where he is pastor at Hope for People Church and director of “Evangelism Today” center for evangelism and discipleship. Caleb attended Shasta Bible College and graduated from Northwest Baptist Seminary in 2005 with a Master’s of Divinity. Together with his wife Christina their desire is to help believers and churches to do biblical evangelism and discipleship through training seminars on evangelism and discipleship for churches, personal discipleship, and working closely with national pastors to help strengthen and multiply the church in Ukraine and beyond. The Sukos also have five children. Learn more on their site.

You can listen to Caleb’s podcast “Now Is the Time” or follow him on Twitter.

At the end of the show, we also highlighted some more key resources:

Bonus content! After we recorded this episode, we also joined Caleb on his own podcast to answer the question: “What is Missions Mobilization?” We think you’ll enjoy this bonus installment. Click here to listen.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

Powered by ABWE International.

Announcement: It’s the show’s first birthday! As a way of thanking our loyal listeners, we’re giving away some great, free books and spiffy, new ABWE swag. Click here for details and to enter our drawing.

The Islamic revolution of the 1970’s plunged Iran into a state of political and spiritual darkness, but God’s kingdom hasn’t been halted. This week we talk to a missionary converted from a Muslim background in Iran after becoming disillusioned with the Islamic religion. He and his wife has ministered extensively in the underground church in Iran, and he now continues to serve and resource believers and churches for Farsi-language evangelism and discipleship. Hear how the Iranian church is standing firm amidst persecution, radical Islam, and political upheaval.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can help bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

Powered by ABWE International.