The Missions Podcast

How high are your church's standards for sending a missionary? This week Alex sits down with Mike G., a pastor and former missionary on what it takes to be qualified for the missionary task. They'll explore topics relating to language acquisition, the training pipeline of regular church leaders, and how churches have to be at the forefront of selecting, equipping, and training those who feel called to cross-cultural missions. Mike G. is a pastor at University Baptist Church in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Mike serves on the leadership team of Global Serve International. He has also served in cross-cultural, unreached people groups in places like Venezuela, Papua New Guinea, and Mexico. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Cloud of Witnesses season 2 launches today! Go to cloudofwitnessespodcast.com. Or, in Apple Podcasts, visit here. On Spotify, click here.

This week Alex sits down with Mike G., a former missionary to unreached people and pastor in Fayetteville, Arkansas as they discuss the pitfalls of sending poorly equipped missionaries to the field. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Why is it so difficult to share the gospel with Muslims? This week we dig into The Missions Podcast archives for a conversation with Cedarville University's Matt Bennett. Together they discuss faulty evangelistic methods, the commonalities and differences between Christianity and Islam, and how we can effectively study the scriptures of multiple faiths to win Muslims to Christ. Dr. Matt Bennett is the Associate Professor of Missions and Theology at Cedarville University and has written a number of books on the topic of missology including recently releasing his new book "Before You Go: Wisdom from Ten Men on Serving Internationally", which released on June 4, 2024. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

In this week's episode of The Missions Podcast, we dig into the podcast archives for an insightful conversation with Matthew Bennett about Islam and how to engage Muslims and other religious texts. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

How can the church survive under the current Iranian regime? Alex sits down with Lana Silk, CEO of Transform Iran, in which she talks about the current spiritual and political landscape in Iran. They discuss topics of women's rights in Iran, a historical view of Christianity in the country, and how the Christian church is not just surviving but thriving amid intense persecution and desperation. Lana Silk is the CEO of Transform Iran, a ministry that supports and resources the persecuted church in Iran. They help network believers together, provide evangelism resources for the family, and provide care for women and children that have faced abuse. Support the ministry at www.transformiran.com. Are you curious about global missions but not sure where to start? ABWE's 24-Hour DEMO is designed to help you find, explore, and encourage you to take your next step in missions. Find out more and register for the next event at demo.abwe.org. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

This week's episode features Lana Silk, CEO of Transform Iran, as she talks about the current spiritual climate in Iran and how the Iranian church is growing despite intense persecution. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Are we over-complicating God in our theology? In this week's episode, Alex sits down with Jeriah Shank, a pastor, theologian, and author as they discuss divine simplicity. They'll explore how a simple God satisfies the ontological argument for God, supports the missional effort, and ultimately enhances God's glory and majesty. Jeriah Shank recently received his PhD from Midwestern Seminary. He pastors a church in Iowa and has written two books, "Learning To Grow: A Bible Study In The Birth And Growth Of The Believer" and "Is God For Real: Believing In The God Who Is There", which is a children's book to disciple the youngest believers. You can find out more about Jeriah's ministry at jeriahshank.com. How does divine simplicity inform our apologetic to muslims? Explore that topic and why Allah cannot be the ultimate god in this week's Overtime episode for Premium subscribers. Sign up at missionspodcast.com/premium. Not everyone is called to cross-cultural missions, but as Christians, there are many ways to support the Great Commission and those that God has called to the field. Help get more laborers into God's harvest by praying and supporting Prefield missionaries at ABWE. Visit abwe.org/Prefield for more info. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

In this week's episode, Alex sits down with Jeriah Shank, a pastor, author, and theologian as they discuss divine simplicity and how that satisfies the ontological argument for God. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

What is happening with the church in Moldova? In this week's episode, Alex and Scott sit down with Mihai Chisari, a pastor and Live Global National Partner, as they discuss the challenges of evangelism and discipleship in one of the poorest countries in Europe. They'll discuss several factors that make ministry hard in this 96% Eastern Orthodox country including nominalism, the breakdown of families, the spread of poor doctrine in the church, and a national identity crisis. Mihai Chisari is a pastor, church planter, and Live Global National Partner. He pastors Imago Dei Church, mentors struggling young men, and teaches Moldovan pastors at Imago Dei Academy. His heart is to see the evangelical church in Moldova grow with proper doctrine, to raise up spiritually healthy men and leaders, and to train others to be evangelistically minded in their community. With over 3 billion people in the world who have never heard of Jesus, the global need is tremendous for workers to go into the harvest fields (Matthew 9:37-38). Is God calling you to missions? We'd love to have a conversation with you on how you can use your gifts and talents to advance the Great Commission at home and abroad. Visit abwe.org/SendMe for more information and to take your next step in missions. Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber! Premium Subscribers get access to: Exclusive bonus content A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts Invite-only webinars A free gift! Support The Missions Podcast and sign up to be a Premium Subscriber at missionspodcast.com/premium The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org. Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.