One of the amazing things about being a follower of Jesus is how God has uniquely gifted every believer to serve in His kingdom. I am reminded of I Corinthians 3:6 where Paul writes, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.”

Global missions is a team effort. It is not something we can or should try to do by ourselves. God has given each of us an essential role in building His Kingdom.

At Reach Beyond, we focus a lot on preparing the soil. This is important when trying to reach people groups who are unreached and resistant to the Gospel. Seeds won’t grow in dry and hard ground until the soil has been softened, the rocks have been cleared and there is someone to give them water.

God has given us tools like radio, medicine and community development which are really effective in preparing soil, planting seeds and giving them water. He has positioned Reach Beyond to equip and empower local believers to use these tools to reach their own communities with the Gospel. God has uniquely equipped our indigenous ministry partners with skills and abilities to communicate and engage with their community on a heart level. And He is raising up the local church to water and nurture each seed.

God has a role for each of us and He wants us to work together.

Preparing the soil is not an easy job and many times we don’t get to see any immediate results from our efforts. The same is true for those who plant and water seeds. It can take a long time for things to begin to grow. As believers, we often don’t even know that we have planted or watered a seed. But God knows since He places those seeds. And in His perfect timing—The Lord of the Harvest will make things grow.

We are excited by how God has been using clean water to help enable church-planting efforts in West Africa. People from an unreached people group that has long been resistant to the Gospel are coming to know Jesus as their Savior, and the church is growing rapidly. There are many other mission organizations, missionaries and local believers who have been working for decades to reach this people group. We do not labor alone. Thank you for being part of what God is doing!