Originally published on Substack on Oct. 20, 2025

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

In October, my mind naturally turns to thinking about world missions. I say naturally, but really I’ve learned to think in that way because our church has an annual world missions conference each October. It’s a wonderful time of getting to interact with different missionaries our church supports from around the world, hear their stories, pray with and for them, and be challenged as a congregation on the call to missions — at home and abroad.

It’s important to my husband and me to teach our kids from an early age that the body of Christ is global. Yes, we highly value and emphasize commitment to and involvement in our local church. We’re thankful to live in America and enjoy the freedoms we have, but we want our children to know that the USA and the American Church are not all there is. We pray our children will see early on the beauty and the blessing of a diverse bride of Christ. We want them to look forward to this:

“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Revelation 7:9-12 ESV (emphasis mine)

What a glorious day that will be! Worshipping the Lord together with brothers and sisters in Christ from “every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages” — a beautiful cacophony of praise that will be more breathtaking than the greatest symphony ever performed on earth!

Paul, in the book of Romans, expertly lays out the gospel, walking us through it step by step. He explains our natural state as sinners and our utter need for Christ (Romans 3:23), the free gift of God’s grace (Romans 6:23), forgiveness and freedom from guilt (Romans 8:1), adoption as children of God (Romans 8:15), and the simple way in which this profound transformation within us takes place (Romans 10:9-10).

Paul follows this, however, with this note on the importance of spreading the gospel:

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’” – Romans 10:14-15

First of all, I need these reminders on a regular basis. I confess I do not always live my life on mission.

I also want my children to see the need and importance for this mindset from an early age. These are a few ways my husband and I are trying to teach our children about missions, specifically world missions.

Pray for missionaries your church and/or family supports

Our church supports a robust list of missionaries from around the world – a mix of Americans who have gone to other countries to share the gospel and native believers who are starting churches and ministries in their own communities. I think one of the easiest and most practical ways to help teach our children about missions is to pray together for these missionaries as a family.

To help make that practical and visual for my young children, I bought a world map placemat (we don’t have the space for a large map or poster), printed pictures and names of the missionaries, then grouped them around the perimeter of the map by continent and country. This helps literally put a face to the names. Our kids pick a person/couple/family to pray for each morning and we help them look up the countries where these people minister.

In the photo below, names and faces are blurred to protect the safety of some of the missionaries who serve in sensitive areas. Not all of them do, but I opted to blur everyone.

Our church’s world missions directors also compile information on each missionary our church supports that includes a description of their ministry, where they serve, and a list of some of their personal or ministry prayer needs. If your church doesn’t have something like that, you could gather that information yourself. It’s a wonderful reference for us. After our children have chosen a missionary for the day and found their location on the map, we’ll look up their information and pray for them together each (well, most) mornings.

I would also recommend having a globe in your home. A formal one is great, but for children, one of these inflatable ones is fantastic. It’s easy to hold and you have the option to play games with it.

Any way you can bring visual, tangible elements into the conversation will capture the interest of your children and hopefully expand their understanding.

As we teach our children to pray for missionaries, let us also remember to pray for more “beautiful feet” (Romans 10:15), as Jesus instructed: “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9:37-38 ESV)

Interact with missionaries

One of the aspects of our church’s missions conference that I love is special sessions just for preK – elementary-aged children. Missionaries come and interact with the kids, tell them about the countries where they are from or serve, and teach them about the Great Commission and God’s call for all of us to share the gospel with those around us. My children love it and I greatly appreciate the wonderful opportunity this is for them.

Even if you don’t have an opportunity like this available to you, look for opportunities for you and your children to interact with real-life missionaries. If someone is on furlough or coming through your area to raise support, invite them into your home or take them out for a meal. Ask them questions about what they do, where they serve, and how you can pray for them. What is family life like where they live? How would a child’s experience in that country be similar to and different from your child’s life? Encourage your children to ask questions as well! I learned from Sally Clarkson to set the expectation for my kids that when we have a guest in our home, they need to engage in the conversation and ask at least one question of their own. Our kids are young, so we’re still working on implementing that well and teaching them how to do it, but it’s a great goal to pursue.

Teach (and demonstrate) the Great Commission

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 ESV

“And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:15-16

These verses are typically referred to as “The Great Commission.” Jesus’ parting words of instruction to us. Just as Jesus’ primary goal in his earthly ministry was preaching the good news of His kingdom and the salvation he brings – so he wants us to be about the business of telling others we encounter about Him.

We need to teach our kids the importance of telling others about Jesus and help them learn some practical ways to do that. A few simple ways to begin could include:

• Telling their friends about Jesus
• Inviting a friend who doesn’t attend church to come to a church service or event
• Offering to pray with friends who are sad, hurting, or in need
• Praying for their friends to come to know Jesus

No matter what you teach them, don’t forget the old adage: More is caught, than taught. If we aren’t living this out ourselves, it’s going to be hard for our kids to get excited about doing it. If we don’t prioritize it, they likely won’t either. Ouch. This is admittedly an area in which I need to grow!

Study countries from around the world

This is admittedly easier for us as a homeschool family. However, anyone can do it! If your child is studying a particular country for school (homeschooled or not), learn about that country’s spiritual culture as you study their secular one. What percentage of the population professes to be Christian? Is Christianity a recognized religion? Can people freely gather to worship God? Does the government interfere with religious practices? If freedom of religion is allowed, does cultural pressure still make it difficult to be a Christian? If answers to these questions aren’t easily found, there are some resources that can help.

• Operation World
• Window on the World (the kids’ version of the Operation World book)
• Many atlases or general information sites about the world’s countries will list predominant religious makeup of the population or estimated percentages

Have fun with this! Take a quick deep dive into a country with your family. Study the people who live there and the typical lives they would lead. Learn about the animals and plants that are native to the area. Make a meal that would be typical for that country and enjoy it as a family. Look up well-known missionaries who ministered in that country and read their stories. Find out if your church supports any missionaries in that country and reach out to them (if you can do so without compromising their safety). Ask more about what they’re doing and how you can pray for them. This can be a fun and educational experience!

Read biographies

My son loves Spiderman (specifically, the kids’ show Spidey and His Amazing Friends) and I don’t mind him watching a superhero show. I believe the enjoyment of stories involving heroes or heroines is innate because the greatest story involves a hero rescuing us. However, while superhero and princess stories are fun, I want my children to learn the stories of real-life heroes even more.

Two thousand plus years after Jesus, we have the benefit of learning from the Bible and the lives and stories we find within it — plus hundreds of years of church history that include many more noteworthy lives and stories. These stories of record aren’t on the same level as Scripture, of course, but I want to know them just the same and I want my children to know them as well. So, I read books with them about these “heroes of the faith,” many of whom were missionaries.

I want my kids to pray like George Muller. (He wasn’t a foreign missionary but certainly practiced local missions in the orphanages he ran.) Learn to overcome great obstacles like Gladys Aylward. Persevere in the midst of unthinkable hardship like Helen Roseveare. (Note of caution there: Her story is intense. I would stick to a children’s version of her biography if your children are young.) Forgive like Corrie ten Boom and Elisabeth Elliot. Care for the underprivileged and orphans like Amy Carmichael. There are so many great examples who have so much to teach us about living for the Lord. These biographies also have the amazing ability to put our problems in perspective.

There are a number of great resources today for accessing these biographies written in child-friendly form. Some of my favorites include:

• Do Great Things for God series by The Good Book Company
• The Little Lights series
• Heroes for Young Readers series by YWAM
• Christian Heroes: Then and Now series by YWAM (my children are still a little young for these, but this is the version of the above series for older readers)
• Hero Tales by Dave and Neta Jackson

If you’re interested in reading more yourself, here are a few good places to start:

• A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot
• The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom
• Through Gates of Splendor by Elisabeth Elliot

These are just a few ideas to help you begin. They may or may not work well for your family, but hopefully they will give you a place to start and you can find something that does work for you. The main goal is to find simple, but impactful ways to teach our children the importance of missions and telling the people around them about Jesus. In the process, we’ll also remind ourselves not to neglect these Biblical commands. Together as a family, we can look forward to the day when we will all worship together at the throne of God — the ultimate goal of missions!

“Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples! For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods.” (Psalm 96:2-4)