Focus

EMM worker Melanie Nofziger attended a gathering with her friends a few months ago when someone stated “We should help the Venezuelan refugees.” “The refugees?” Melanie wasn’t even aware of the growing presence of refugees in San Jose, Costa Rica.

Jonathan Bornman and his film crew included some Christ-followers, some with no religious commitment, and many Muslims. As producers, Jonathan and Michael Hostettler were committed to the making of the documentary being as much a part of the ministry as the film itself. This was an opportunity to live incarnationally with the crew. 

EMM worker Austin Zuercher and his wife, Griselda, were married on August 6th together with friends and family in Honduras. Instead of going on a traditional honeymoon, the couple decided to take a few months to serve together in a different ministry setting. Here’s a small glimpse into our first three months of marriage.

Suddenly, a look of puzzlement came the faces of the Yeu villagers, and they began chatting among themselves in their own language. What stumped them was a question about their origins. Finally, one of the villagers answered Andre and Karen Provost in Thai, “We have no idea where we originated. We only know that we came to Thailand from Laos.”

A man once asked EMM workers Steve Horst and Bethany Tobin, “How do you keep going when you see so few people believe?” At that time, Bethany thought about many disappointments and stories and then just simply said, “Not living for success in numbers. Digging deeper into faith in God.” It requires courage and prayer to reply with an answer like that. It requires wrestling with disappointments and...

Shortly after arriving back in Wales after a busy summer in the US, EMM workers Alan and Carol Wert took a Sabbath day of rest and sat on a hill overlooking the bay near Barry Island. As they soaked up the last of the summer sun, Carol read through the book of 1 Peter asking the Lord to speak to her. The breeze swept across the tall grass and Carol sensed the Spirit reminding her of our calling as...

Dorothy* went through a dark, dark valley of mental illness, but God has used it to find her heart again. She had been deteriorating since January when she began openly persecuting the believers and cut off relationships with EMM workers Steve Horst and Bethany Tobin, forbidding her mother from worshipping or associating with the church. 

EMM workers Phil and Linda Gottschalk arrived in Bucharest, Romania in August. During the interim time until they found a long-term apartment, they got to know the neighborhood around the rental they were living in. They explored the area and visited a few stores for groceries and household supplies.

In 1987, Glenna Sollenberger went on a mission trip to San Miguel Chicaj, a village in Guatemala. When they arrived, the team discovered that most of the people spoke a local Mayan language. Their heart language was Rabinal Achí. The missionary told the team that the people respond better when the local pastor preaches in their language, rather than Spanish.

In 1954, EMM was at a crossroads regarding how it might get involved with ministry to unreached people groups in Southeast Asia. There were two equally important opportunities: Indonesia and Vietnam. In fact, Orie O. Miller, who was the secretary of the organization at the time, made visits to both countries.

EMM worker Andre Provost asked a group of church leaders in Thailand: “Can you read the label on the bottom of the crate?” They responded, “MADE IN THE USA!” A PowerPoint slide of a Thai person in front of an imported crate appeared on the screen. Andre exclaimed to the crowd, “This is our problem! We are following a model developed in an environment very different than ours.” 

It was the perfect day for a spontaneous picnic – there was no rain (even though it was the rainy season in Costa Rica). The blue sky beckoned to EMM worker Jen Hoover’s soul. She sun's warmth tenderly touched their skin and the shade promised to cool their sweat-moistened shirts.  Bar-B-Q meatballs, rice, and steamed broccoli would not be Jen’s first choice for a blanketed picnic meal, but i...

Sarah and Mark Schoenhals serve with both EMM and Virginia Mennonite Missions in Thailand with their two daughters. Recently, Sarah reflected on their trip to participate in the 2022 Mennonite World Conference Assembly in Indonesia. After months of uncertainty about travel restrictions, Covid, funding, and finding an interpreter, the details all came together. 

EMM volunteer worker Gerry Keener recently returned from a two-week trip to Vietnam to reconnect with the Mennonite church in the country. Gerry reflected on how it was a joy to experience the energy of refreshed relationships and … of course, delicious Vietnamese food!

Have you ever had an individual's name come to mind? Maybe you hadn’t thought of the person for a long time. Have you felt your heart grieved about the state of a nation you have never visited? Have you shed tears at the thought of the sins of your people? Was the Holy Spirit perhaps trying to get your attention?

With anticipation, EMM staff member Julia Tsai sits down for coffee with EMM worker Kandace Glenn. She lives in Phnom Penh, Cambodia with her roommates, Thida and Len. The three friends smile at Julia through her laptop screen— this is sure to be an engaging conversation. 

Every month, a small group of believers gathers together for communion at New Life Dangriga Christian Fellowship in Belize. Imagine a tray of about a dozen small plastic cups filled with grape juice and a container of bread on a table at the back of the worship space. But this week, believers in this Dangriga church filled a few more cups.

Wales is a rugby nation. It always has been. It probably always will be. But in early June it was football that captured the heart of the nation. EMM worker Carol Wert is not a football fan. She never has been, and probably never will be. But when she heard that Wales was playing Ukraine for a spot in the World Cup, she found tickets for what she knew might be a historical moment. But Carol was un...

Tuesday mornings start a little earlier than the rest of the week for EMM worker Michael Clancy. Michael serves as an urban missionary in Lebanon City, Pennsylvania. His day begins at 7 a.m. meeting with a man who recently completed a discipleship program.

On February 24, Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. EMM workers Phil and Linda Gottschalk planned to go in August to join the faculty of the Zaporizhzhya Bible Seminary in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine. Phil had been administrating the seminary’s Master of Theology program there since 2012. He was there in May 2014 after Crimea and the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk were taken. They have both been to Zap...

Did you know that in Southeast Asia alone, there are nearly 674 million people from more than 1,820 different people groups? Of these people, just under 6 percent identify as evangelical Christians. Very simply put, that means that in Southeast Asia alone, there are more than 633 million people who have not experienced the life-transforming power of Jesus. 

Jacob E. Brubaker was a pattern maker who frequently traveled to New York City. During one of his trips, he was intrigued watching the banana boats come in to dock and asked someone for more information about where the boats were coming from. Upon learning that someone could pay a small fee to also ride on the boat back to its home country of Guatemala, Brubaker was very intrigued by the idea of C...

As the post-war world was working to reorganize itself, Mennonites found opportunities to share the peace of Jesus through relief work. Many people think of the Second World War as being fought in European and Pacific theaters but forget about the toll that the war took on the African continent. One of these places was Ethiopia, which had been occupied by Italian forces from 1935 to 1941. Mennonit...

Elam Stauffer was confused by Chief Nyatega’s invitation to start a church in an empty field. He responded, “To whom shall I preach? The trees? The people are down there.” He was right: the people were down there. But what Elam didn’t realize at the time was that even though the people were down there, the people also went up to Katuru Hill.

When Marvin Lorenzana shares with congregations, he often says that Jesus came not to launch just a “church,” but rather a “movement.” This movement, Jesus called the “Kingdom of God” and, as He taught in more than one way, it was meant to grow exponentially as generational disciple making takes place.