55.6K
Downloads
47
Episodes
What does missions really look like? The lives of cross-cultural workers can sometimes be shrouded in mystery—or obscured by misconceptions. In each episode of the Relentless Pursuit Podcast, we go behind the scenes to talk to a missionary about their life and work. Join us as we uncover the messy, rewarding, sometimes dangerous journey of following Jesus to the nations.
Episodes
Tuesday Oct 31, 2023
Tuesday Oct 31, 2023
Hannah is a missionary from Finland who works in a country in Europe that has a Muslim majority. She is part of a team that helps vulnerable pregnant women who are considering whether or not to keep their babies. The relationships they build and the care they provide are building a foundation for making disciples and planting a church in their corner of the world.
**Bonus Content** Don't miss Hannah's story about how God provided (in advance) a way for a pregnant woman to provide an income for herself so she could keep her baby.
Check out our article and photo essay, “Is Europe Unreached?” Also, our video “From Albania to Greece” gives a good picture of what ministry in Southern Europe looks like.
Pioneers offers summer Edge opportunities in Europe, serving non-religious people groups, as well as immigrants and refugees from around the world.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team at Pioneers.org/Start, or chat today.
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
Just before Koko and her family moved to Southeast Asia, she was diagnosed with medical condition that she was told would eventually cost her the ability to speak. As someone with a calling to teach, this news upended her expectations of what ministry overseas would look like, and it drove her to explore how suffering can shape our perspective on God.
Prefer to watch the discussion? Check it out on YouTube and don't forget to subscribe and ring that bell!
**Bonus Content** When Koko’s family needed to renew their visas, it included both navigating a treacherous flood and the equally challenging cultural and bureaucratic pitfalls of getting their documents signed during Ramadan. Sometimes it pays to play dumb.
The Spiritual Survival Handbook for Cross-Cultural Workers is a book Pioneers published that has been used by countless missionaries to prepare themselves spiritually for the challenges of cross-cultural ministry.
Sojourner’s Workbook: A Guide to Thriving Cross-Culturally is a book Pioneers developed for missionaries during their first year of ministry.
Check out our Multiply video series, which gives a glimpse of what church-planting ministry around the Pioneers world looks like.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team at https://pioneers.org/start, or chat today at https://pioneers.org/contact.
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Aron served in church leadership for 13 years before God called him and his family to serve in Peru. In this episode, Aron tells us about their transition to life on the edge of the Amazon jungle, where they led a Launch team for missionaries learning language and culture before heading out to unreached people groups throughout Peru. Find out what the Launch team journey looks like, and the qualities that make it possible for someone to take the gospel to isolated tribes.
** Bonus Content** Don’t miss Aron’s tips on how to make a tree grub taste like bacon.
Want more info on the weird foods missionaries sometimes eat? Here’s a list of possibilities: Would You Eat These 10 Foods for the Gospel?
See how a father and son team have taken more than 50,000 radios with audio Bibles into the rugged mountains of Bolivia in our Little Red Radios video series. Prefer photos? See the weathered faces and ancient traditions of the Quechua in our photo essay from the same trip.
Peru isn’t the only place with a Launch Team. Check out this article that explains how Pioneers Launch Teams prepare new missionaries for success in their new areas of ministry.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team or chat today.
Tuesday Oct 10, 2023
Tuesday Oct 10, 2023
Taylor Murray is a TCK—a “third culture kid”—who lived in Japan from the age of nine until when she graduated high school. Although she lived in a loving family, she struggled with anxiety and an eating disorder that came to a head when she spent a gap year in Germany. While in rehab, she came to the realization that it was OK not to be OK, and she is committed to being vulnerable and transparent about her struggles—and helping others to do the same.
Taylor wrote her first book about life as a missionary kid when she was 14 years old. Hidden in My Heart is available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle versions.
More recently, she wrote Stop Saying I’m Fine: Finding Stillness When Anxiety Screams, available in paperback and Kindle on Amazon.
You can follow Taylor on Instagram to keep up with everything she doing.
Taylor’s family was featured in our video Of Donuts and Atom Bombs. Hear how her parents respond to Japanese who are still hurting from being bombed in World War II. Also, Takuma shares his story of coming to faith through a relationship with a Pioneers worker.
Check out a photo essay, The Streets of Japan.
Read an article about How Pioneers supports TCKs.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team or chat with us today.
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Tuesday Oct 03, 2023
Summer has served in two countries in East Africa and now lives in Central Asia, where she is seeking to reach a nomadic people group. In this episode, she explains the unique challenges of building relationships with people who are on the move, as well as the lessons she’s learned about God and herself in the process.
**BONUS Content** Summer tells about how she was surrounded by an angry mob, taken away at gunpoint and then encountered a special woman on her way to jail, in Ethiopia. Get the bonus story!
Get a glimpse of what life and ministry in Central Asia is like, from slaughtering a lamb with a local family to jam sessions with local musicians: Watch the Middle Ground video series
Also, check out an article that explains more about the characteristics of the 200 million people who are in nomadic people groups.
Summer is part of a network called the Nomadic Peoples Network, which offers resources and training on reaching nomads.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team or chat today.
Monday Oct 02, 2023
Monday Oct 02, 2023
We had the privilege of having Emily host The Relentless Pursuit Podcast for the last 2 seasons. She and her husband have joined a multi-ethnic church planting effort in Kansas, so she is passing the baton to our new hosts Jess and Matt.
Season 3 of the Relentless Pursuit Podcast drops Tuesday October 3rd!
Jess was a missionary for several years in Japan and now works at the Pioneers-USA base helping people do partnership development (See what this means on Episode 11 of Season 2). Matt leads the Marketing team for Pioneers-USA and has had a wealth of travel experiences and interactions with missionaries on the field.
Check out Jess' story when she was a guest on Relentless Pursuit, to hear more about how she went from a short term trip in Guatemala to a long-term missionary in Japan.
Ready to take the next step, but not sure what it looks like? Schedule a call with our team or chat today.
Tuesday Mar 22, 2022
Tuesday Mar 22, 2022
Raising support is one of the biggest obstacles to new missionaries heading to the field. How do we cultivate a godly perspective on this important task? Listen in as Andrew shares about the deep spiritual and relational blessings of partner development.
In this episode, we discuss:
- What partner development is
- Is asking for money unspiritual?
- The biblical foundation for raising support
- The obstacle of awkwardness
- Andrew’s personal story
Books that Andrew recommends on support raising are:
Funding Your Ministry by Scott Morton
You can learn more about the training program Radius International here.
You can learn about our other training program partners International Project and Global Frontier Missions too.
Want to know more about missions and what going might look like? Come to Encounter 22.
Tuesday Mar 15, 2022
Tuesday Mar 15, 2022
Elijah and Emma served among Muslims in two North African countries. Learn about the challenges they faced and how the beauty of the gospel was revealed to their neighbors as a result. Content warning: violence, death, and infant loss
Follow us on Instagram: http://instagram.com/pioneersusa
View show notes: https://podcasts.pioneers.org/podcast-episodes/finding-joy-in-suffering
Tuesday Mar 08, 2022
Tuesday Mar 08, 2022
After years of serving the Church through marriage ministry, John and Pat took up a new role as marriage coaches for missionaries. Hear what they say about common issues in marriage and how they show up on the field.
Tuesday Mar 01, 2022
Tuesday Mar 01, 2022
Elyse serves in South Asia, a region that suffered much in the COVID-19 pandemic. Listen as she shares a beautiful story of Jesus healing and delivering a young woman. God’s power is unmatched.