What does a cross-cultural missionary look like? One description won’t work. Cross-cultural gospel-spreaders take all kinds of forms: Bible translators, ESL teachers, environmentalists, pizza shop managers.

Missionaries across the world bless their host cultures in diverse ways to demonstrate and teach the love of God. If you want to know what a missionary does all day, we recommend finding some and asking them. They’ll appreciate that you did.

But in the meantime, we’ve asked one for you.

One of our friends is a doctor in an Asian city with a large Muslim population. He cares for people’s physical needs while laboring to illuminate their great spiritual need and the Solution…

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Our translators have been hard at work again. Thanks to their efforts, we’ve been able to post several new sermons and articles on our site since the beginning of 2008.

Check out newly translated resources in these languages:

• German (Quest for Joy booklet)
• Romanian (5 new sermons)
• Russian (3 new sermons)
• Spanish (22 new sermons)
• Thai (Quest for Joy booklet)
• Finnish (Quest for Joy booklet)

We add translated resources regularly, so check back to find the newest materials.

Find out how you can help with the translation of Desiring God resources.

There are things we can do to help our kids love the nations and the cause of Christ, even though a heart and calling for the Great Commission is ultimately something only God can grant. Here are a few ideas from Ryan and Anna, who are currently preparing to serve in Asia with their two young daughters.

1. Pray for missionaries as a family. We keep a stack of prayer cards on the dinner table and rotate through them during mealtime prayers.

2. Read missionary biographies to your children. The stories of Hudson Taylor, Adoniram Judson, William Carey, Gladys Aylward, and other missionary pioneers are captivating ways to orient a child’s heart on the most important things in life.

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Making plans for summer? If you’re interested in being completely stretched, battling discouragement, experiencing new kinds of joy, and significantly widening your perspective of God’s heart for the nations, check out some of these short-term opportunities.

• Pioneers
• Frontiers
• Christar
• AIM

These links represent only a few of the many opportunities available. For a longer directory of missions agencies, see Urbana’s list.

Third Culture Kids (TCKs) are children who grow up in a culture other than their parents’. Their “home” culture is the first culture; their “host” culture, the second. And they live in the middle, the “third” culture. TCKs include children of missionaries or other international workers. They face unique struggles in their lives of transition. It’s our privilege as the body of Christ to provide care for them as they join with their parents in God’s call on their lives to be overseas.

Here are 15 ideas from the TCK Advocate at Frontiers on how to love TCKs:

1. Begin a relationship with one—or with a whole family of TCKs. Commit to keeping in touch with them. Many people are in T…

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One of my Muslim friends was offended recently. Two Jehovah’s Witnesses had visited his family a few times and had spent hours telling his family about their religious group and their views.

In return, my friend’s family offered to give the women information about Islam. The two women agreed to come back and learn more. My friend and his family put a great deal of time and effort into collecting useful information for them.

However, after some time, only one woman came back. And even though she showed up, she showed little interest in discussing Islam. Not surprisingly, my friend had zero interest in her religion either.

Granted, I wouldn’t be excited about him becoming a Jehov…

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Were you unable to send a Christmas present or care package to some missionaries you love this season? It’s okay. You can still bless a missionary this Christmas.

[Update: It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway—even though Christmas is past, these ideas can still encourage our friends overseas. Let's keep serving them all year long!]

Here are 13 post-office-free ideas to get you started, most of which you could do right now from your desk:

• Pray specific Scripture for them and their ministry, and then email it to them.
• Call or email their parents—Christmas might be just as lonely for the ones at home as the ones away.
• Purchase phone minutes for an international ca…

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Seven years ago Augustine Bookroom launched in South Africa with a vision to put sound evangelical and reformed literature into the hands of as many people as possible. Since then, the Pretoria-based bookseller has distributed God-centered materials in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and other African countries. Augustine Bookroom provides a cost-effective way for individuals, seminaries, counseling institutions, and other groups in Africa to purchase Christian resources including many from Desiring God.

Do you live outside the United States and encounter difficulty in getting our resources shipped to you?  View our list of international booksellers to see whether one of th…

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Prosperity gospel teaching in Africa continues to concern many lovers of God-exalting, biblical theology. Pastor Vincent lived in Africa for several years, teaching and preaching the Scriptures. He often felt “alone in the camp” in the midst of the rising popularity of prosperity gospel preachers. However, deeply convicted by Edwards, Bunyan, and others, Pastor Vincent continued to persevere in teaching the whole counsel of the Gospel.

Recently, he returned to visit South Africa and nearby countries with copies of Desiring God and For Your Joy to distribute to pastors and lay people. He longs for the people of these areas to combat the glittery deception of prosperity gospel with s…

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How did several copies of Sed de Dios (Desiring God in Spanish) wend their way into the remote mountains of Peru this fall? Jeff, ministering in Peru, had planned a pastor’s retreat for September. When he heard about Desiring God’s $5 book sale in June, he ordered several copies for the event. A short-term group brought the books from Florida to Peru for him.

Jeff presented each of the 17 pastors with a copy of Desiring God and they studied the book during the retreat. Some of the pastors came from villages high in the mountains and will bring the truths absorbed from the conference back to the people there. One pastor commented that he was “ruined” by the book, meaning that he didn’…

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