Missionaries News & Stories

On Wednesday, April 29, a global virtual congregation blessed 21 new United Methodist missionaries. They come from eight countries and will go forth to serve in 15 countries.

Dr. David Scott examines what we can learn from missionaries amid the coronavirus restrictions. Missionaries have long experience in putting love into action in unfamiliar settings. In this third and final reflection, he considers how focusing on concrete acts of service helps to cultivate a sense of compassion that keeps us connected to the world around us.

Amid the disruptions caused by the coronavirus, people seek new ways to maintain spiritual and social connections. This second of three reflections looks at how missionaries stay connected to social support networks with communication and mutual prayer, even when they are physically distant from those they love.

Last Lenten season, we participated in the Immigration Immersion program on the southern border.

Doug taught three history classes spring semester 2019, the Early and Medieval Church, the Reformation, and the Enlightenment to Today. Kulli taught systematic theology. This year, we have an amazing group of students who are highly engaged and ask a lot of good (and sometimes difficult!) questions.

Last Lenten season, we participated in the Immigration Immersion program on the southern border. We began by visiting the huge border patrol campus to learn their perspective on border security and how they address it.

Holy Week becomes a time for fellowship and play for grade-schoolers in Liberia. Every year for the past several years, the Rev. Jacob Nathan has organized and led a camp for grade school children. Last year, we had Easter Camp on the campus of the Zacchaeus Garjay United Methodist School (UMS) in Gboko Town, Grand Bassa County, Liberia.

We celebrate because a church in California helped to provide hives to several farmers last year, and the expectant boost in honey production has increased income levels and improved standards of living. Beekeeping is becoming a farming activity of choice in Ghana and in Africa.

Ardell Graner, a missionary serving in the Dominican Republic, offers a practical exercise that helped a group of pastors focus on families and individuals affected by domestic violence in their communities.

Missionary Ellyn Dubberly teaches at a Methodist school in El Salvador, where the school and the students who study there continue to grow.

James and Grace Cho, missionaries with the Mongolia United Methodist Mission, offer an update on plans for how the 20-year-old mission initiative will transition from a mission to a self-governing faith community.

A Lenten devotion on how the coronavirus crisis is illuminating deeply rooted injustices