Series: Horizons

July 21, 2018

Christian Standard

RISE

How You Can Engage Refugee and International Students in Your Community   By Emily Drayne Did you know there are more than 1 million foreign students on the campuses of American colleges? These students come from more than 200 countries around the world. The five countries that send the most students to the United States are China, India, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Canada. Many times, these international guests don’t even see the inside of an American home during their time here. It’s estimated about half the world’s future leaders will study on American campuses. Did you also know that

July 11, 2018

Christian Standard

Project Mañana: Working Together Today for an Eternal Tomorrow

By Emily Drayne I’ve seen it happen time and again in my ministry with the International Conference on Missions. Whether committing to go on a short-term trip or enter full-time service, when people simply open themselves up to God’s plan, he guides them every step of the way.   Brian and Nebraska’s Story After his first short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic in 2007, Brian Berman felt an urge to get involved. He fell in love with the culture and people, but he also saw a physical and spiritual need there. After leaving corporate America, he and his wife,

June 13, 2018

Christian Standard

Generations in Missions: Don’t Count Me Out!

By Emily Drayne  An older missionary might say, “They’ll never understand how we did it.” A younger missionary might complain, “They’re so old school.” It’s a generational issue that’s probably been around forever. Leaders err, however, when they count out those from other generations simply because of age, style of doing the job, or lack of “experience.” In missions and in ministry, it seems, there are two ways to do the job. There’s the way it’s been done for years, and then there’s the way new leaders with new ideas are doing it. So how can we carry out our

April 28, 2018

Christian Standard

Finding Hope in the Numbers

By Emily Drayne In the six-plus years I’ve served with the International Conference on Missions (ICOM), I’ve learned that determining the total number of active missionaries is like trying to hold water in your hands. Both are difficult, slippery, and elusive, but I’ve found it’s possible to count missionaries if you do your research and find credible sources. The biggest challenges we face as we count missionaries include these: some serve in sensitive areas and closed countries (and the sponsoring groups are less apt to publicize information about them); some are transitioning to a new location; some are leaving the

April 7, 2018

Christian Standard

Incorporating Missions into Your Church Activities

By Emily Drayne From time to time, every church needs to refresh programs and activities, including missions ministry. No matter the church size, budget, or the number of missionaries supported, missions can easily be prioritized and incorporated into your church activities.   A Minute for Missions An easy way to incorporate missions into your Sunday service is to do a “minutes for missions” each week. This can be as simple as showing a few photos of a missionary you support and talking about them for two or three minutes. Show a map of where they serve and talk about the

March 2, 2018

Christian Standard

Standing Firm in the Spotlight

By Emily Drayne   A missionary gets to live in a new place, explore new locales, try new foods, have cross-cultural experiences, and more. What’s not to love? They live the same life, just in a different location—right? No! A million times no. The amount of planning, prayerful consideration, financial preparation, and training that goes into becoming a full-time missionary is staggering. Missionaries undergo months of training to prepare for something that one must experience to truly understand. They need a lot of self-discipline, hard work, and faith to make that leap.   The Need for Spiritual Disciplines Some people

January 31, 2018

Christian Standard

Love, Marriage, and Missions

Four missionary couples discuss how their marriages affect their mission work, and vice versa. By Emily Drayne Some aspects of marriage are hard. It’s not easy joining together two lives, two families, two personalities, and two upbringings under one roof. Success in marriage takes work and desire. With divorce rates at about 50 percent in America and even higher in parts of Europe, I’ve often wondered how missionaries are affected by this epidemic. Not only are missionary couples working and maintaining their marriages, but they might also be serving in a cross-cultural setting. Some are also raising children. Missionaries might

January 9, 2018

Christian Standard

How Budget Trends Are Affecting Missions

By Emily Drayne Missionary support, as most of us know, can be subject to change without notice. Consider the missionary on the field who hears her financial support is being cut by her top supporting church or individual. Time and again, a financially assured ministry has been deflated, usually without notice, in a single conversation. What causes such changes and what impact does it have on the missionary? Is there anything a missionary can do?   Finding Balance A recent trend is for churches to refocus their mission efforts on local community development. This is a viable choice, there’s no

November 28, 2017

Christian Standard

Sew to Sow

By Emily Drayne Sandra Ward has an amazing heart. She saw children wearing next to nothing, found a simple tie dress, and thought, Hey, I can make that myself! With that, she founded Sew to Sow. Based out of Kernersville, North Carolina, and affiliated with First Christian, Kernersville, this ministry provides handmade outfits for children sizes 16 and under. The first batch of outfits was sent to Brazil in 2013, and the dressmaking has continued since then. I had the privilege of spending an afternoon with this group and I was impressed by the quality of the outfits, their love

October 21, 2017

Christian Standard

Velvet Ashes: Reaching Women All Over the World

By Emily Drayne If asked, “Have you ever felt lonely?” most people would answer yes. Most people would also admit to sometimes missing their friends, family, and hometown. Now consider missionaries serving in foreign countries and imagine the loneliness they face. Velvet Ashes is reaching out to women on the mission field who are experiencing these types of feelings. Founded by Danielle Wheeler in 2013, Velvet Ashes is helping women from all over the world connect in a central location: online. The goal is to serve the women who have uprooted their lives and planted roots in new lands. The

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