The Missions Show

What does it mean to boldly proclaim the gospel in a culture that often rejects biblical truth? In this episode of The Missions Show , hosts Alex and Scott talk with evangelist, church planter, and author Ryan Denton about recovering the art of pleading with unbelievers to repent and trust in Christ. Drawing from his experience in prison ministry, open-air preaching, and church planting, Ryan shar...

What does it take to go from feeling called to missions to actually reaching the field? And how can you trust God through the challenges of raising support? In this episode of The Missions Show , hosts Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford welcome Ken Lorow, Director of PreField Ministry at ABWE, who helps prepare and coach new missionaries. Together, they discuss the steps toward missionary service, the...

How should missionaries teach deep biblical truth in cultures where storytelling, rather than reading, is the main way people learn? In this week's episode, Alex and Scott explore “character theology”—using the people, events, and overarching story of Scripture to help believers understand who God is and what he has done. They discuss why missionaries should resist choosing between biblical storie...

What is God’s mission—and how does the church fit into it? Christians often talk about being “on mission,” but before asking what we should do, we need to understand what God is doing. In this episode, Alex and Scott talk with Justin Schell, author of The Mission of God and the Witness of the Church , about the biblical story of God revealing himself and drawing people into communion with him. Fro...

In the final installment of the Defining the Missionary Task series, Alex and Scott explore what it means to entrust the mission to others. The missionary task doesn’t end when people are evangelized, churches are established, and leaders are equipped. Healthy churches should grow into sending churches—taking responsibility for making disciples, planting churches, and carrying the gospel to other...

Are missionaries doing their job if they never work themselves out of one? In part three of the Defining the Missionary Task series, Alex and Scott turn to a vital part of church planting: equipping local leaders. Healthy churches need qualified men who can shepherd, teach, and lead God’s people. Drawing from Jesus’ example with the disciples and Paul’s investment in leaders like Timothy and Titus...

Why must missionaries seek to establish churches? In part two of a four-part series on the missionary task, Alex and Scott move from evangelism to the next step: establishing healthy local churches. They explore why the church is not a Western institution or an optional addition to missions, but central to God’s plan for his people. Those who trust in Christ are saved into a community where believ...

What is at the heart of the missionary task? In the first episode of a four-part series, Alex and Scott explore why essential to the missionary calling is that they must clearly proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and call people to repent and believe. While mercy ministries, relationships, and other forms of service have an important place in missions, they cannot replace sharing the gospel in...

What does it take to send missionaries who are prepared not only to go, but to stay and faithfully serve for the long haul? Alex and Scott talk with Brooks Buser, president of Radius International , and Pat Daly of Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary about the church’s role in sending well-equipped missionaries. They also discuss the upcoming Missionary Conference and its focus on helping...

Should Christians want to be losers? In this episode of The Missions Show , hosts Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford talk with pastor and author D. Michael Clary about the ideas behind his book, Loser Theology . Clary challenges the belief that Christians are somehow more faithful when they are suffering, struggling, or losing. Scripture teaches believers how to endure hardship faithfully, but that doe...

If the world is ending, why bother with missions? This week, Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford are joined in the ABWE studio by Benjamin Vrbicek, lead teaching pastor of Community Evangelical Free Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and author of The Restoration of All Things (Baker Books). For most Christians, the doctrine of last things produces anxiety, charts, and headline-watching rather than com...

Does it take more than a calling to be a missionary? This week, Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford are joined by Matt Bennett and Ryan Robertson, co-authors of The Path to Being a Missionary , to explore a question that often gets overlooked: not simply, “Am I called?” but “Am I qualified?” Together, they discuss why churches should assess aspiring missionaries based on biblical character, sound doctri...

In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex sits down with veteran missionary Ron Washer to explore what God is doing across Africa after more than 50 years of ministry. From growing up as a missionary kid in Niger to serving in Togo and helping mobilize new workers, Ron shares how God has used faithful teams, medical ministry, church planting, and leadership development to establish thriving loca...

Four years into the full-scale war in Ukraine, daily life is still marked by air raid alerts, uncertainty, and loss. Yet ABWE missionary Mike Gustafson and Pastor Zhenya Yashchenko share how God continues to build his church in the midst of the conflict. They discuss the realities of serving while missiles fall, caring for families under constant stress, and shepherding a church whose members have...

Physical fitness may not be the first thing that comes to mind when we think about ministry, but should it be? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford explore why caring for our bodies is part of faithfully stewarding God's calling. They discuss the relationship between physical health, spiritual discipline, and long-term ministry effectiveness, while avoiding legalism...

How do you reach one of the youngest populations in the world with the hope of the gospel? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott welcome Reuben Gitonga , a Kenyan ministry leader serving with ABWE. Reuben shares his remarkable journey from growing up in Nairobi to leading a ministry that uses soccer, discipleship, and local church partnerships to reach young people living in Kenya'...

Do you have what it takes to be a missionary? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott discuss the importance of spiritual readiness, personal holiness, and character formation as someone starts to explore their calling to the mission field. Drawing from Scripture and missionary examples like Hudson Taylor, they highlight the need for intentional training, self-discipline, and a serio...

What does everyday ministry look like in South Asia? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex sits down with K.Y., a ministry partner serving in a predominantly Muslim country in South Asia, to discuss the realities of gospel ministry in one of the world’s most challenging mission fields. K.Y. shares how his ministry integrates theological education, discipleship, and church planting to strengt...

Are short-term missions trips more helpful or hurtful? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott welcome Scott McCoy, Launch Point Missions Lead at ABWE, to discuss one of the most debated topics in modern missions: short-term mission trips. McCoy shares why he believes short-term missions remain valuable when they are thoughtfully designed around the needs of missionaries, local belie...

Can compassion ministry and gospel proclamation work together? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott sit down with Dave Phillips, founder and president of Children's Hunger Fund (CHF) , to explore the relationship between gospel proclamation, mercy ministry, and the local church. Dave shares the remarkable story behind CHF’s founding, beginning with a life-changing visit to a pedia...

Is Peru as reached as we think? In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott talk with veteran ABWE missionary Stephen Douglas to explore more than four decades of gospel ministry in Peru. Stephen shares how God led him and his wife Debbie to the city of Arequipa—a historic Roman Catholic stronghold known as the “Little Rome of Peru”—and how a small church-planting team, where no evangeli...

This week, Alex and Scott tackle a difficult question from a missionary wife who, after experiencing significant trauma, grief, anxiety, depression, family challenges, and cultural stress during overseas service, no longer feels able to return to the mission field while her husband remains convinced they should continue. They explore the realities of missionary hardship, the emotional and spiritua...

In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex and Scott welcome pastor, author, and former missionary J. Chase Davis to discuss the crisis of biblical masculinity and its implications for the church and missions. Drawing from his book Offensive Christianity , Davis argues that the modern church has often replaced robust discipleship with therapeutic, “nice” Christianity that neglects courage, convic...

In this episode of The Missions Show , Alex sits down with ABWE’s Director of International Security and Crisis Management , Bill Gruppen , to discuss the difficult balance between missionary safety and gospel risk-taking in some of the world’s most dangerous places. Drawing from decades of experience in law enforcement, emergency response, and security, Bill shares how God redirected his professi...

Christian missions has never existed in a cultural vacuum. From William Carey’s role in ending widow burning in India to Gladys Aylward confronting foot-binding in China, the spread of Christianity has often transformed entire societies. But where is the line between gospel transformation and cultural imperialism? When missionaries challenge practices rooted in paganism, are they discipling nation...