EMQ Volume 62 Issue 2

By Evelyn Hibbert | Jesus’s coming was whole-of-life. Yet often, when thinking of the gospel, we focus just on words. Thinking of the wholeness of salvation alerts us we always have more to learn. Openness to things we have not previously encountered or thought of is critical for effective missionary work. No doubt, more challenges will come that we are not yet aware of. But Jesus is the answer. He will show us how to live holistically for him wherever we are.

By Larry Sharp | Missionary visas are no longer granted for many countries today. At the same time, we are realizing that being a missionary is not limited to a spiritual professional. Just as God is a missionary God, all his people are called to share with him in his mission work. There is no sacred secular divide. Through sharing and living out the gospel in workplaces, Christians everywhere can fulfil the Creation Mandate, the Great Commandment, and the Great Commission.

By Harriet Hill | In 2001, a small group met in Nairobi to put together materials to respond to traumatized people in war zones across Africa. This program and its materials have spread around the world. First, the history and development of the program are presented. Then, the article reports research findings on the program’s effectiveness in relieving trauma symptoms, developing spirituality, and increasing coping skills. The article closes with insights into why this approach has been so successful.

By Jim Ritchie | Healthcare missions suffers from a dichotomy of purpose. Is medicine alone an adequate motive as a ministry of compassion? Or are we wasting effort and money on the temporal body when we should be concentrating on the eternal soul? We need a broader strategic theology of healing missions. Might we find one that includes a wider spirituality of healing, including Hiebert’s “excluded middle?”

By Sofia Locke | Mental health is a growing area of need. Christians have an opportunity to step into this space to bring holistic healing. However, we often engage in such ministries without taking the time to contextualize our understanding of mental health. This article explores some of the challenges when engaging in cross-cultural mental health work.

By Glen Bagley | This article examines how churches can move beyond temporary relief toward transformation in ministry to the poor and homeless. Based on research done in a city in the US, it discusses how hope grows through relationships – when people are known, valued, and loved in word and deed.

By Thad Hicks | How can Christians respond to disaster with both compassion and conviction? This article explores the tension between evangelism and humanitarian aid, drawing on both fieldwork with The Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services and traditional research. Discover how faithful responders balance saving lives and sharing Christ, not as competing tasks, but as an integrated part of their witness. As the world changes, the integrated witness must also adapt and innovate so that the witness is present and relevant in both word and deed.

By David Kimiti, Safia Kimiti, and Ian Ratcliff | Genesis 47 outlines the way that God provided for the people of Israel in response to a climatic event. This provision suggests to the church today a way of thinking about climate migration and how it can respond. Drawing on Genesis 47 and the limitations of current legal agreements, this article explores why the church should play its part in advocacy, but also in responding to the practical needs of today’s climate migrants.

By Soo Min (James) Park | The US, like many nations, is not a mono-cultural mission field. Beneath the surface, immigrant, refugee, minority, and younger generations live with shame-honor, fear–power, marginalization–belonging, and brokenness–wholeness (healing) dynamics that shape how they perceive sin, redemption, and identity. This article challenges churches to reclaim a holistic gospel – proclaiming forgiveness, restoring honor and belonging, conquering fear, and healing from brokenness and trauma – while building spiritual resilience for transformative discipleship in America’s complex cultural landscape. Although written with a US focus, its content is relevant to all contexts with diverse populations across the world.

By Terry Jackson | This article emphasizes that while resources are abundant and valuable, their effective application depends on relationships. Relationships are primary, and activities or resources should support these meaningful connections.

By Scott Klingsmith | The direct support of national pastors and missionaries by American and European churches has been promoted as a more efficient and effective model of ministry than sending missionaries from the West to other parts of the world. After a historical overview of funding models and a survey of current missionary funding models, I explore the various pros and cons of direct support of national pastors and missionaries, with or without the mediation of American missionaries or agencies.

By John E. White | As the world urbanizes, more missionaries are living and ministering in cities. Therefore, more missionaries are encountering the stress of the city. This article reports the results of a survey of urban missionaries around the world. Four causes of stress and five coping methods are outlined. These should be helpful for anyone in urban ministry today.

By Edward L. Smither | In this article, I explore two values of historic monastic mission – study and simplicity – that contributed to missionary spirituality. Illustrating these values through two modern evangelical examples, I invite the reader to consider the importance of study and simplicity and how they might be recovered for mission today.