ReachAcross has 70 years of experience as a mission agency solely focused on reaching Muslims.  ReachAcross support staff, together with all our supporters worldwide, serve our mission workers in order that we can achieve our aims of effectively sharing the gospel with Muslims, serving among Muslims in practical ways, discipling Muslims to follow Jesus, and seeing Muslim background believers becoming the church in their homelands.  Our focus and efforts are directed at:
– Giving you helpful advice on personal and ministry preparation
– Providing you with important services, such as…… Read More

The first priority is to pray and ask the Lord to guide you as you consider involvement in mission service.

It is also good to search the Bible for what it says about mission – such as the Biblical basis for mission, what is involved, and some of the Biblical examples of how the gospel was proclaimed and shared. We also need to know what the gospel is and how to share it! It is best to start now, in order to gain experience in this.

The Lord is keen that we should pray for more workers to go to the mission fields where there is a ripe harvest ready to be gathered (Matt. 9:37-38). We should ask Him how we are to play our part.

Part of that seeking is also getting information about opportunities available, and talking to others about your desire and passion. Speaking to your pastor and others in your church leadership is important. They should have godly wisdom to share with you, and can pray with you throughout the process of seeking the Lord’s will for your mission involvement. Ideally the church will support you in your intended mission involvement, supporting you in prayer and encouragement, perhaps providing for your practical needs, and ‘sending’ or ‘commissioning’ you into mission service. For this to happen, your church leadership will need to recognize the Lord’s leading in your intended mission involvement.

You need to have a vibrant faith and you need to know your Bible well!

ReachAcross focuses on reaching Muslims and serving in the context of living in Muslim-majority cultures. Therefore it is essential to know something of Islam and Muslim culture in the proposed country of service. If coming with ReachAcross for short term service, only the basics of Islam are needed.  However, the longer the proposed term of service, the better prepared you should be. Reading books on Islam and on reaching Muslims with the gospel is essential and it is good to start sooner rather than later. There are also Bible colleges and other educational resources which can be used in order to prepare you for mission among Muslims.

In ReachAcross we are pretty flexible about the preparation required. The level of preparation will vary according to your intended role and length of service.  However, all our mission members are to be ready and prepared to share the gospel with Muslims! We would be happy to help and advise you in your preparation for mission service. Please contact us.

Bible School/Bible College training is a great help, even if your church has given you a lot of good teaching. Longer term Mission workers would do well to have an understanding of missiology, a good grasp of Christian doctrine, know the Bible very well, and continually apply it in their lives.  It is helpful to be able to preach and/or teach, to understand and be active in evangelism, and have a good knowledge of apologetics, especially in relation to questions Muslims may ask. A study of church planting is key in many mission settings.

Even so, applicants for short term service are not required to have had Bible College training, and applicants for longer term service may take such formalised training during their initial years of service with us.

There are short and long term service opportunities that do not require professional competencies. There are other opportunities that only require a minimum of training, such as Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) which can be studied from as little as a few weeks right up to Masters level for those who make this their major profession.

Please contact us and we will guide you so that you can fill a vital role, or even join one of our own training programmes!

You are not alone! Probably every mission worker has had similar thoughts. However, you may be surprised at how many people will be supportive of what you are seeking to do. There are good resources that can help you get started and ReachAcross can guide and help you. Please contact us. Don’t let ‘fear’ put you off. God is able to speak into people’s hearts to support you and is well able to provide for all your needs.

It can be dangerous to work in certain locations during particular times; however, there are usually safer areas to work among all Muslim people groups. ReachAcross has well-developed, tried and tested security policies and procedures. However, 100% safety cannot be guaranteed anywhere in the world.  Mission workers must be prepared to be courageous in the face of dangers and challenging circumstances – courage is one of our ReachAcross values.

All this said, some locations are more dangerous than others, and mission workers, their families, and their supporting church(es) need to pray and consider what they feel is the most appropriate place of service. ReachAcross does not send its mission workers to places they do not want to go! We all need to be confident that we are in the place the Lord wants us to be.