Why Local and Global Missions Need Each Other

Josh McQuaid • Sep 04, 2015

Mission agencies like TEAM exist because of our conviction that mission is incomplete if it ignores those beyond our immediate geographic reach. A critical aspect of the agency’s task within the church is to remind the larger community of far-flung needs that might otherwise be forgotten. We have beaten this drum loudly and persistently.

In our passion to keep the global unreached in the North American church’s vision, however, we have sometimes encouraged the belief that international mission is of a higher order than domestic mission. We have inadvertently created the belief that international missionaries are the hardcore, the totally committed, the “radical.” We have subtly contributed to the belief that domestic ministry is a cop-out and that those engaged in this kind of ministry are shirking the highest of callings and the deepest of sacrifices. In our zeal for the far-flung, we have occasionally fallen into the trap of condemning those called to pour out their lives in our neighborhoods.

This is as unfortunate as it is unbiblical. We are desperately in need of a more nuanced conversation around the topics of local and global mission. As one small attempt to bring balance to this conversation, we offer here four reasons why we insist on viewing local and global mission as fundamentally intertwined.

Global Mission is Born Out of Local Mission

Global mission is nothing more than local mission outside your home environment, and ministry at home is the best preparer for and indicator of success overseas.

It is easy to forget that Paul, the prototypical New Testament missionary, started out in local ministry. In fact, before his year-long ministry at Antioch under Barnabas’s supervision ( Acts 11:25-26 ), Paul wasn’t really the man we think of. What activities made up this year of ministry? No doubt many of the things that make up local ministry as we know it today: relationship-building, outreach, evangelism, discipleship, teaching, leadership development, etc. These building blocks of ministry were as fundamental to Paul’s success as they are to ours. They are equally as critical to local ministry as to global work. And, like Paul, missionaries called to global engagement will need to learn these skills within their local context before ever moving to the other side of the world.

This is a case of being faithful in the simpler things before you are entrusted with the more complex. While we’re convinced that local mission is just as critical as global mission, the latter is often a more complex proposition. Moving a family thousands of miles away, investing years in language study and crossing major cultural barriers are all exceptionally risky endeavors. And there is no greater predictor of success in global mission than success on the local front. Without local mission, there is no global mission.

Local Mission Requires Global Vision

It is easy to focus on local ministry because local needs surround us on a daily basis and demand our attention. But since the very beginning, God has been in the business of pushing his people out of their current context and sending them into the wider world. Abraham, Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel are all notable examples. And these individual instances are microcosms of God’s larger emphasis on sending Israel to the nations.

Significantly, we should also add Jesus to the list of individuals sent as part of God’s mission. John 1 , Philippians 2 and Hebrews 2 make clear the implications of Christ’s incarnational ministry — setting aside his former context to take on flesh, humbling himself, speaking our language and sharing our suffering.

God sent Israel as a whole and Abraham, Moses and many others in particular. He left his own throne to live with us. But to what end? To the end of blessing the nations, of bringing the good news of his kingdom to the lost and broken kingdoms of the world. We see this taught clearly from Genesis right through to Revelation ( Genesis 12 ; Psalm 22:27-28 ; Isaiah 2:2 ; Revelation 5:9 , 21 ), and emphasized by Christ’s own commission to his earliest followers ( Matthew 28:18-20 ; Acts 1:8 ).

It will not do, then, to separate local ministry from global work, picking and choosing the emphasis that suits our purpose. To do so is to fundamentally change the mission of God and set off down a path that is foreign to God’s heart as revealed in Scripture.

Global Mission Multiplies Local Mission

We can measure effectiveness in many different ways, but most of us agree that bringing the good news of Jesus to those who don’t yet have it is a primary calling for the church. This being the case, the question for each congregation becomes, “To which unreached are we called?” How we answer this question will determine whether global missionary-sending feels more like subtraction or more like multiplication.

Here’s what I mean: If you feel called to exclusively reach the unreached of your neighborhood and city, then sending a member of your body to another city (let alone another country or continent) will always feel like a loss. If, however, you recognize God’s heart for the global lost, and set your vision accordingly, then engaging beyond your borders will be a fulfillment of your mission and a multiplication of your ministry.

It’s easy to focus on what we lose by turning our attention globally. If we send people or money to the other side of the world, we won’t have those resources at our disposal to address the needs of our community. If we pray for global needs, we draw our attention beyond our immediate needs and might overlook the more obvious opportunities next door.

These are valid concerns, and we’re right to raise them. But don’t overlook the way global engagement can multiply local mission too. Practicing generosity tends to foster a heart of generosity, which can spill over into all areas of life. Calling your people to give to God’s global mission will engage them in ways that can increase their openness to support local projects as well. Individuals who serve overseas will return with invaluable experiences that will make them more effective workers on the local front, too, and will serve as powerful local examples of those who obeyed God’s call to engage his world. Mobilizing fervent prayer for the nations can be an easy way to open hearts to local needs as well. Quite apart from draining precious resources, global engagement multiplies our ability to engage locally too.

Your Local Mission is God ’s Global Mission

Two years ago, I met a family who expressed their desire to move to the Middle East as missionaries. The specific location on their hearts is one of the most difficult places in the world to reach; the odds of this family ever acquiring the skills to successfully live on mission in that context were nearly impossible. At the same time, they shared with me that the Lord had cultivated their heart for this people by embedding them among a community of expatriates in their home city. As we spoke, they told me story after story of individuals from this people group whom they knew at a deep level and with whom they would soon be able to share the gospel. The truth is that this family was having a greater global impact in their own city than they would ever have overseas.

It was once true that the only way to reach China, Pakistan or Japan (for example) was to physically move to these places, live among the people, learn their language and share the gospel in their context. Of course, there are many people groups that still require this kind of engagement, but the distinction between local and global mission is becoming murkier by the day. Today, it is most likely that your best opportunity to reach the unreached will come from getting involved in outreach within your own city or state. You may not have the opportunity to take the gospel across borders, but you certainly have the opportunity to reach the unreached in your backyard.

And let’s be clear: From a missional perspective, this blurring of local and global should be celebrated. Our God is never constrained by geography, and his singular mission requires both local and global engagement. The diversification of our neighborhoods and the increasing ease of global migration can all be harnessed to push our congregations deeper into the mission of God.

So, who is God calling you to reach? Where do they live? How will you reach them? Will you limit your focus to those that look like you, act like you, speak your language, and eat at your restaurants? Or will you look beyond your own cultural borders to the lost of the world? If you do, you might just be surprised to find that they actually live right next door.

Bridging Dissonance: Finding Connection in Music and the Gospel

By Emily Sheddan • 18 Jul, 2024
TEAM worker Luke Standridge and his fellow musicians use music to build connections to faith in Japan. In music terms, dissonance creates movement or even suspense in a song. It invites tension. That tension is what helps grab our ear’s attention and the interchanging of these notes with pleasant melodious parts is what makes music such a delight. In a similar way, God is using music to grab people’s attention and catalyze Gospel impact in the largely unreached nation of Japan. TEAM Global Worker, Luke Standridge moved to Japan in 2019 with no clear direction on how he was going to use his passion for composing music while doing ministry. However, after Luke got involved with a local church and began developing deep friendships, the Lord opened unimaginable doors for Luke that in time, coordinating his creative skills with sharing the Word. “People Need to Come to Japan!” Growing up as one of ten kids in a family that was heavily involved in ministry and missions, Luke never considered that it would one day be a part of his own journey. In 2016, via a Japanese language learning class in Indiana, Luke and his brother had the opportunity to travel to Japan. Hearing, learning, and using the language in the context of Japanese culture was the goal. While it was Luke’s first international trip – even his first trip on a plane - it was also his first time hearing about the spiritual condition of the Japanese people. “And just through that, God did a huge 180 change on my heart,” says Luke. “More people should come here as global workers. People need to come to Japan!” The call God was laying on Luke’s heart is echoed when looking at the spiritual landscape of Japan. The nation is home to the second largest unreached people group in the world. It is one of the most difficult places for the Gospel to take hold and grow. Japan is also home to a deep and rich culture that prizes creative arts from pottery to ink to music to anime – a fact that would help Luke find his niche in life and ministry. God’s Guiding Hand In the short three-month timespan of that first trip, Luke found that opportunities came naturally to share about life, and people’s curiosity for Christianity grew. “I left Japan knowing I just had to come back,” Luke shares. “Even if I didn’t get back to the same area, I knew Japan was where God wanted me to be.” The Lord is good all the time and all the time the Lord is good. His plans do not fail. Luke returned to Japan in 2019, and less than a week after arriving, he was put in touch with a renowned composer in Japan. The composer saw some of Luke’s music and invited him to help write the music for a beloved in-country animated show. But God wasn’t finished yet! Fast forward a year, and more connections and opportunities allowed Luke to help with music for Pokémon - a franchise that has brand recognition around the world and was being developed into a TV series in Japan. Luke recalls how the Lord began using these connections in the production world to open doors for Gospel conversations. One night while having dinner in downtown Tokyo with famous artists and composers from all around the country, Luke was asked about his ministry-focused visa. This was a rare opportunity in a setting with people otherwise uninterested in Christianity. Luke shares, “The whole time I could see God’s hand in guiding the entire thing.”

Connecting in a New Kind of “Neighborhood”

By Lorena de la Rosa and Suzanne Pearson • 13 Jun, 2024
Through creative arts and other forms of innovative outreach, “The Neighborhood” is creating connections to the Gospel and the love of Jesus. CONNECTION. It’s a common word with powerful implications. Dictionary.com defines connection as a joining or linking together; a relationship between people or objects that unites or binds them together. God has created each of us with a deep need for connection with Him as well as connection with others. Hebrews 10:24-25 speaks to this, as the writer exhorts, “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” This God-given need for connection lies at the heart of a creative and innovative ministry in Japan known as “The Neighborhood.” TEAM Japan global worker, Kelly and her family created The Neighborhood as a place where connections are formed through creative arts, educational opportunities, and simply just providing a space for people to be together. A Family Calling The journey to the creation of The Neighborhood began over 5,000 miles away from Tokyo, in California where Kelly, her husband Jeff, and their five children were living. The kids were the first to sense God’s calling to missions, and asked why their family wasn’t serving in this way. How Kelly and her family came to TEAM is a God-story in and of itself. “God placed a TEAM Japan worker at our lunch table the same week that the kids posed that question to us,” Kelly recalls. “We had never heard of TEAM and so we thought, ‘let’s check this out.’ After that, God just kept confirming that we were supposed to be here.” After a period of fundraising and with much excitement, the family of seven moved to Japan in 2014. For the first five years, Kelly and Jeff served as a part of other TEAM ministry initiatives, but they began to sense a stirring for something new. Creating The Neighborhood Kelly and her family truly have a deep gift for hospitality, and regularly opened up their home to others they met in Tokyo. They saw a great need for people to have a place to gather and connect, and they wondered what doors the Lord might be opening for them to meet that need. “About a year before we were to return the States on home assignment, we were just really thinking about our future in Japan,” Kelly says. “We saw a need for people to have a ‘third place’ – a place that’s not home and it’s not work. They didn’t have a church community or any other place where they could meet people and just connect.” Kelly goes on to explain that in Japan, the culture is such that people don’t generally invite each other into their homes, but as her family did so, people embraced that opportunity. “This idea formed in all of our hearts of a student ministry center – a place where we can create community and learning,” says Kelly. “It was born out of what we were already doing in our home, but seeing how we could expand it and have better space.” God’s Provision What happened next is a true testament to God’s provision. Kelly, Jeff, and the kids returned to the States and began sharing their vision for The Neighborhood with their supporters and churches who responded generously. Upon returning to Japan, the search was on for the right space. “We had a Christian realtor that we told our dream to, and he just went looking for it,” Kelly recalls. When the realtor found a 5-story apartment building, he said, “It’s kind of out of your budget but it has what you need and want.” The Lord provided the funds and the family moved into the space in November 2019. They now occupy all but the ground floor, with living space for their family as well as classrooms, areas to study or hang out, and guest rooms for exchange students or others who need a place to stay overnight. The first floor is occupied by a pizza shop – a welcome amenity for the many groups and students who visit The Neighborhood. “It’s very convenient!” Kelly says with a laugh. The Neighborhood began to see lots of activity right away until the pandemic hit in early 2020. During the height of the quarantine, Kelly and Jeff used the time to redecorate the space and plant gardens outside the building. Then as the restrictions eased, they invited individual students or families over for meals and fellowship. It wasn’t until March 2023 that The Neighborhood was able to fully open again as intended. Kelly shares that despite the setbacks of COVID, the Lord continued to provide the funds to pay the rent.
Share by: