What if more missionaries could stay on the field longer? 50% of missionaries who leave the field do so within their first five years, and 70% of those who leave do so for reasons that could have been prevented. That's why caring for missionaries starts long before they reach the field. In this week's episode, Ken shares how ABWE's missionary coaches walk alongside new missionaries, helping them prepare for challenges, grow in their faith, and build a strong foundation for long-term ministry. Because getting missionaries to the field matters. Helping them stay matters, too.

Feeling called to missions but unsure what comes next? From raising support to preparing for life on the field, taking the first steps toward missionary service can feel overwhelming. But you don't have to navigate the journey alone. In "What to Expect as a Prefield Missionary," Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford sit down with ABWE's Ken Lorow, Director of PreField Ministry, to discuss what it takes to prepare for the mission field. Hear stories of God's faithfulness, discover why support raising is about more than money, and learn how God uses the preparation process to build your faith and equip you for long-term ministry. ▶️ Watch now on YouTube or listen on your favorite podcast app!

Scott and Alex joined ABWE at @missionary_com 2026—and brought The Missions Show along to capture exclusive interviews about the mission of God. Get access to all our exclusive interviews from the conference. Use promo code MISSIONARY26 for 89% off your Patreon subscription. 🎙️ Join us: patreon.com/cw/TheMissionsSh… #TheMissionsShow #ABWE #Missionary2026 #TheLordWhoSends

Enjoy @missionary_com conference 2026? Leave a session with unanswered questions? We will be releasing exclusive behind-the-scenes interviews soon! Watch to get a discount on premium access!!

In family worship, the goal isn’t simply to help children know the right terms. We want them to know the God those truths reveal and Scripture gives us stories that can capture their attention, stir their wonder, and help biblical truth take root. That principle reaches far beyond family worship. Whether we’re teaching our children, discipling new believers, preaching in a local church, or sharing the gospel across cultures, we can pair sound doctrine with the rich stories God has given us in his Word. Comment how you are incorporating Biblical storying into your family worship times.

"The gospel–it's a story. It's not just a set of facts about what has happened. It's the most beautiful story there is." The Bible tells the greatest story ever told: God created, humanity fell into sin, Christ came to save, and one day he will make all things new. Across the centuries, great works of literature have echoed themes we find throughout Scripture: sacrifice, redemption, good and evil, death and life, and the longing for a world made right. But the gospel isn’t merely another great story. It’s the true story that gives meaning to all the rest. Watch or listen to the full episode now.

We are at the Missionary Conference! Visit the ABWE booth or come watch us record LIVE at the conference with some of the headline speakers and many other missions leaders. We'd love to meet you and hear your questions and topic suggestions about missions, theology, and practice. We hope to see you there!

Preachers, where do you turn when you need an illustration? Movies and pop culture can give us helpful examples. But sometimes the best illustration for a biblical truth is already in the Bible. The Old and New Testaments are filled with stories that show us God’s truth in action. Drawing from them can help people see how Scripture fits together—and keep pointing them back to God’s Word. Instead of standing outside Scripture and only talking about its ideas, how can we help people live into its story?

What does it mean that God is holy? We can give a technical-theological definition, but the Bible shows us. Uzzah touches the ark of the covenant and is struck dead. Isaiah stands before the Lord as the seraphim shield themselves in his presence. These stories give weight and meaning to a truth that can otherwise remain abstract: God is holy. That’s one reason biblical storytelling matters. The stories of Scripture can challenge false ideas about God and help our friends and neighbors see more clearly who he has revealed himself to be. 🎧 Hear more about teaching theology through Bible stories on The Missions Show. Listen on your favorite podcast app or watch on YouTube.

The gospel is more than a list of facts to learn. It’s the true story of what God has done to save sinners through Jesus Christ. And stories have a way of reaching us differently. People may have objections to Christianity before they’ve truly heard the whole story of Scripture. Faithfully telling that story can help people see biblical truth with fresh eyes, not through a sales pitch, but through the beauty of God’s Word. How can missionaries, pastors, and everyday Christians use the stories of Scripture without sacrificing sound theology? 🎧 Hear the full conversation on The Missions Show. Listen on your favorite podcast app or watch on YouTube.

How do you teach deep truths about God to people who have never read the Bible—or who come from a culture where truth is passed down through stories? In this week's episode, Alex and Scott explore how the stories of Scripture can help missionaries, pastors, and disciple makers communicate sound theology in ways people can understand and remember. The choice isn’t between good theology and good storytelling. Scripture gives us both. From creation and the fall to Christ’s finished work, the Bible’s stories reveal who God is and what he has done. So how can we become better biblical storytellers without watering down biblical truth? 🎧 Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast app, or watch on YouTube.

"We are living, breathing, speaking the revelation of God so that men and women would come to know him." What does it mean to be a witness for Christ? It means our lives and our words point beyond ourselves to the God who saves. We have been given good news to proclaim: Jesus Christ died for sin, rose again, and calls people to know him. 🎧️ Listen to the full episode now!

What does it mean to be a witness for Christ? It’s more than sharing a personal experience. As followers of Jesus, we are witnesses, heralds, and ambassadors with good news to proclaim. God has revealed himself in Christ, and we have the privilege of making him known so that others may come to know him. In this clip, Justin Schell and Alex Kocman unpack why the biblical idea of “witness” is worth recovering—and what it means for evangelism today. 🎧️ 🎥 Watch or listen to the full episode, “What Is God’s Mission?”, now.

The Great Commission doesn’t begin in Matthew 28. From Genesis onward, Scripture reveals God’s purpose to make himself known among the nations. His promises to Abraham and David, his work through Israel, and the hope given to the exiles all point forward to their fulfillment in Christ. Justin Schell explains why we need the whole story of Scripture to understand the Great Commission—and our call to bear witness to Jesus among the nations. What's your favorite scripture passage that communicates God's mission?

What is God’s mission—and when did it begin? God’s mission didn’t start after sin entered the world. From the beginning, God’s purpose has been to reveal himself and draw people into communion with him. And that revelation finds its fullest expression in Jesus Christ. This week, Justin Schell explains why understanding what God is doing in the world must come before asking what we should do for him. Watch the full episode, “What Is God’s Mission?”, on YouTube or listen wherever you get your podcasts.

What is God’s mission—and how does the church fit into it? We often talk about being “on mission.” But before we ask what we should do, we need to understand what God is doing. In this new episode of The Missions Show, Alex and Scott sit down with Justin Schell, author of The Mission of God and the Witness of the Church, to trace God’s mission from Genesis to the Great Commission. They explore why God’s mission is about more than sending, why the church is not simply a tool to accomplish a task, and why good works cannot replace a clear, spoken witness to the gospel. Watch the full conversation on YouTube or listen on your favorite podcast app.

Lasting missions work is rarely built overnight. In Togo, ABWE has seen God work through decades of patient ministry. Missionaries have learned the culture and language, proclaimed the gospel, planted churches, equipped leaders, and faithfully applied God’s Word to life and ministry. There was no perfect technique or shortcut. There were faithful missionaries investing year after year, and trusting the Holy Spirit to bring the fruit. That kind of multiplication takes time. Faithful missions is patient missions. Watch Part 4: Entrust in our Defining the Missionary Task series.

"One of the measures of success should be not only are we getting the lost saved, but we're getting them to the point where they're the senders." @ajkocman What happens when those reached with the gospel become the ones carrying it forward? The missionary task isn’t only about seeing the lost saved. It’s about making disciples, establishing healthy churches, equipping faithful leaders, and ultimately entrusting the mission to them. Over time, churches that once received missionaries can become churches that send them. The best news, is that @ABWE_Intl has seen this happen in places like the Philippines, Togo, Brazil, and Thailand. It's a powerful reminder that the Great Commission is for all peoples and can reach to all peoples.

If the work matters, the training matters. We wouldn’t want a physician taking shortcuts before performing surgery. So why would we treat the work of teaching Scripture, discipling believers, and establishing healthy churches as something that requires less care? Yes, the Holy Spirit is powerful. But he works through the means God has given us. Faithfulness means taking seriously the responsibility to know God’s Word, handle it carefully, and prepare others to do the same. There are no shortcuts to deep, lasting ministry.