Things have been crazy this year, but in the best possible ways. It’s May as I type this, and, so far this year, RP Global Missions board members have been on three international trips; the staff is busy working on a big organizational transition; short-term trip participants have been trained, prepped, and are getting ready to hop on some airplanes; our fourth year of NeXt Steps finished with two more graduates; we had a packed board meeting; and a US visit for the B family is actively being planned. Let me unpack some of these things for you.

Travel to Three Continents

In January, a group of four RP Global Missions representatives traveled to South America to explore a couple of opportunities. The first is a request for an English-speaking church plant for the many expatriates who have relocated in Ecuador, and the second is a request for a Spanish-speaking church plant for a group of Reformed believers in Encarnacíon, Paraguay.

In March, the board decided to continue exploring these two opportunities. Then the 2023 Synod approved setting up a partnership with the CASA Committee to begin actively exploring these works. At this time we do not plan to send long-term workers to these fields, but, similar to what some have done in Japan, there could be opportunities for RPCNA members to move or spend some lengths of time in one or both of these locations to help with and encourage work in Ecuador and Paraguay.

Meanwhile, please pray for those who are putting together the commission and for plans to visit and begin work in these locations. Pray that all of the pieces come together in due time and the path forward would be made very clear.

The second two trips were to South Sudan and Pakistan. It is incredibly helpful for board members to go on these trips so they gain an experientially informed perspective they can use to make decisions about the work and care for those laboring in our fields. It is also of mutual encouragement to our RPGM board members/representatives and those laboring on our fields.

Updates to the RPGM Funnel

In July 2021, I introduced readers of the RP Witness to the RPGM Funnel. In short, the funnel lays out the path people can take to get involved in the learning and going opportunities that can lead to long-term service and more engaged and active support for RPGM’s work and workers. As things have developed since that time, there have been a few changes.

You may notice we are no longer using the name “RP Missions” for our short-term trips. We have been working to align these trips more squarely under the goals and objectives of RP Global Missions and our long-term efforts through developing global Christians to be goers and senders engaged in the work of RPGM. There’s a lot going on in the background to make this transition happen. In the coming months, we’ll be rolling out some new things related to this change. Be on the lookout for emails and social media posts that will give you more information as these rollouts take place. (See below for a bit more information.)

Another change in the funnel is that the section we formerly called “mid-term trips” is now called “internships.” We’ve gotten rid of the sometimes-confusing attempt to differentiate between short-term and mid-term trips as we realized that the greater distinction we wanted to make was not about the length of the trips but, rather, the purpose of the trips.

Trips that are now classified as short-term trips are most of what formerly were under the RP Missions label. These trips are opportunities to serve an existing church or mission for a period of time that is less than three years and are for anyone who wants to go and serve—without strong expectations about what participants are called to in the future.

Internships, on the other hand, are geared toward those who either feel a particular call to cross-cultural missions or are exploring the possibility of such a call. Internships include the components of a regular short-term trip, but also training and discipleship by RPGM staff and field workers. Those who are taking NeXt Steps, Ambassadors for Christ, or other versions of our Missionary Cross Training curriculum are typical candidates for internships.

Opportunities for You and Your Congregation

Speaking of NeXt Steps and Ambassadors for Christ, NeXt Steps is accepting applications for the 2023-24 year. If you know someone who is interested in exploring or pursuing a call to cross-cultural missions, NeXt Steps may be the right, well, next step for them. Send them our way!

If your congregation is interested in starting or expanding your ministry to internationals—be they international students, refugees, or immigrant communities around your church—Ambassadors for Christ is training designed for just such a thing.

The Focus: Churches Planted Abroad

All of the above is done in support of our long-term church-planting efforts, which continue to be the primary purpose for RP Global Missions. God is doing such encouraging things in all of our fields, from the establishment and growth of churches, to the conversion and maturation of souls, to the development of national presbyteries and denominations.

It usually isn’t flashy work. It’s long. It’s hard. It’s slow. But, like the growth of a firmly rooted tree, when we take a step back and remember where we started, there is much growth to rejoice about.

One exciting update I received as I was writing this article is that the Cush4Christ team will soon grow by one as Megan Hanson joins the team. Pray for her as she prepares for her departure in September. And pray that God would continue to raise up others who would answer his call to “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 [He] has commanded [us]” (Matt. 28:19-20).

What Happened at RP Missions?

RP Missions trips came to a halt due to Covid-19 just as Keith Mann took over the leadership of the program. The interruption gave us a chance to rethink the focus of RP Missions in the context of the RPGM Funnel, which had recently been developed.

There was also the practical matter of two confusing names: RP Missions and RP Global Missions. And so, the board decided to collapse the two names into one: RP Global Missions.

What has changed?

Most noticeably, we will no longer use the title “RP Missions.” Instead, we’ll refer to our trips as “RP Global Missions trips.” Anticipating this change, we named our vision casting course “RPGM Explore.”

We’ve also sharpened our focus on RPCNA and RP Global Alliance locations for our trips. While we continue to be involved in other Reformed and Presbyterian locations, we may limit our involvement to supporting their own short-term missions’ programs. The only domestic trip moving forward is the Pittsburgh, Pa., trip.

What about Keith Mann’s role?

Keith will still coordinate the activities that take place at the top of the funnel. This includes the vision casting course “RPGM Explore,” the trips that formerly have been associated with RP Missions, and the newly developed leadership seminar.