It’s Tough Out There!
Approximately 100+ villages in the Arctic do not have an established Christian evangelical church, pastor or missionary presence. Many of these villages are only accessible by plane or boat and have few or no followers of Jesus Christ. The Great Commission is not complete in the Arctic! In response to this need, various Christian pastors and missionaries live and minister among indigenous people groups in rural Alaska and Northern Canada.
Unfortunately, many ministry families become quickly overwhelmed by the spiritual and physical challenges of living in a remote arctic village. Some of the challenges they face include cross-cultural barriers, isolation, extreme weather, limited housing, medical and food supplies. The ministry families of the north are intelligent, strong and are making a difference! Even so, with the complexity of life and ministry, the need for on-going, outside support is significant.
In the book Tender Care by Barnabas International the authors write,
“Going overseas is like putting Miracle Grow on all your sins and dysfunctions.’…No matter how dedicated we are, how sincere in our desire to serve, or how grounded in our faith, the cross-cultural experience will expose our most vulnerable places.…”
Some pastors persevere; many burn out…and yet, there is hope! God provides for these ministry families in a variety of miraculous ways. One of which is through the pastoral care programs of Arctic Barnabas Ministries. At ABM we specialize in administering pastoral care to ministry families where the challenges of ministry and arctic village life can be highly complex. Why? Because, we believe that God calls us to unite and serve as one Body working together to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to those in the North!
We encourage you to consider how you might support the Christian leaders in your own life. In addition, please prayerfully consider how God might be calling you to support the work of ABM by joining others who call themselves ABM Ministry Partners who give through prayer, support and financial giving. To get started today or support your favorite ABM staff missionary visit our website at arcticbarnabas.org/donate!