Missionaries Answer the Hard Question: Why Go Overseas When There Are Needs in the United States?

Bill and Lydia Allshouse, Mexico

“We are all called to serve somewhere, and if God calls you to serve in another country and to another people group, then that’s where you need to be. Lydia and I didn’t know where we were going to serve, considering the needs in the U.S., but we were led to Mexico. God gave us a peace about being in Mexico, so we knew that’s what He had for us and where we should serve.

“We absolutely believe that even though there is a great spiritual need here in the United States, there’s also that great spiritual need in other countries. We believe what Christ said when He gave us the Great Commission—to go and make disciples in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the world. Wherever He calls you, we believe we have to be obedient.”

Jim and Becka Johnson, Papua New Guinea

“Mission work, both overseas and here at home, is important, but you have to go where God calls you to work and how you fit into God’s plan. That’s the main thing. Whether He calls you to go overseas or whether He calls you to work here at home, both are very important. One goes with the other.”

Dan and Dana Jacobs, Kenya

“God places that special calling in your heart that you just can’t shake. Our special calling was to care for orphans and abandoned children in Kenya. Yes, there are needs here and there are abandoned and orphaned children here, but that’s not what God called us to do. He calls each of us to do something.”

Shelley Chapman, Africa Region

“Rather than looking at this question as either/or, I would rather look at it as both. I believe that as missionaries, we serve both in our host country and all of our friends and family in the United States. I also think that it’s important to be embedded in the context over a long period of time in order to see the greatest impact of transformation and change. So, I want to live in the culture where I’m working in my field, which is leadership development in Africa. And then when I come home on homeland ministry assignment, it’s a time for me to invest in the lives of people that I know here in the U.S. Rather than looking at it as one way or the other, it’s the kingdom of God that we’re working on. And the kingdom of God is here in the United States and it’s all around the world. I want to be involved in that process—in that kingdom of God work—wherever that may take me.”

PRAY: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9 NIV). The WGM missionary staff depends on your prayer support. Partner with them in prayer through Prayer Lifeline, an email that is sent to your inbox every Tuesday with urgent needs from those on the front lines.