Five Reasons Why Europe Still Needs Missionaries
It’s really easy to think that because Europe has Christian heritage and history, they no longer require missionaries to work there.
But Europe’s Christian heritage is slowly fading into the background and it is greatly in need of passionate and called people from around the world to bring their resources and giftings to help the local church reach out to their community. You might ask, “Why Europe? Why not go instead to an unreached nation that hasn’t heard the gospel before?” Or the classic, “Why do you need to travel to the other side of the world when there are plenty of unreached people here at home?” Well, in this post, I’ll attempt to explain a little bit of that!
1. The Great Commission never stipulates that we shouldn’t go back.
A lot of people write Europe off as a missionary destination because it has traditionally been one of the strongholds of Christianity. Europe doesn’t seem like it’s a collection of ‘unreached’ people so why should we waste our time there when there are unreached people elsewhere? But in God’s eyes, lost people are lost people no matter where in the world they are, so don’t let that stop you from following the call of God if you feel it calling you to Europe. Prophets were called to the people of Israel time after time, even though they were the chosen people of God! No people group or continent in the world is above the need for called people of God to go in and use their giftings to strengthen the community of God there.
2. There are a lot of people escaping their horrible living situations and running to Europe.
One of the biggest reasons potential missionaries should still consider Europe is the number of refugees currently making their way to Europe. Greece currently has the biggest refugee camp in the world and these refugees are slowly making their way into wider Europe. Each refugee family/individual will need help to readjust and to heal from their trauma. And to do this there needs to be trained people and volunteers all over Europe whose focus is going to primarily be these vulnerable people. As nationalism rises in some European countries, the care required might need to be bolstered by internationals who have a wider focus and the ability to go around the political lines that may sometimes affect locals.
3. There are vulnerable people groups in every country that need care.
Some countries in Europe aren’t taking refugees or are not attractive to refugees because they have their own large population of vulnerable people groups and broken economic systems. Most countries all over the world have so many broken people living in vulnerable positions: vulnerable to traffickers, drug lords, prostitution rings and child labour bosses. Just because it’s Europe doesn’t mean that these people don’t exist, they’re definitely there if you take a look past the beautiful tourism pictures and Influencer videos. God might be calling you to reach a people group that their own country is overlooking. I know from personal experience that it is sometimes easier for an outsider to see the problems in a country than it is for someone sitting within the bubble. Maybe you’re being called to step into the bubble and work on the things that are being forgotten by the majority of people who are citizens of the country. More often than not, you’ll be working with passionate local people who are in great need of help and are burning out for want of more volunteers or workers.
4. Atheism is on the rise in Europe.
Most of today’s young Europeans don’t consider the same attachment to religion that their parents and grandparents do. In past times, a European’s place in their family and culture was closely tied to the denomination of Christianity they were born into. For instance, if you denied your Greek Orthodox religion publicly, you were at high risk of also being estranged from your Orthodox family. For this reason, many chose to keep the religious practices and values, even if they didn’t actually believe in Jesus or live a life of true faith and discipleship. But today, because there’s no cultural and family obligation to be attached to a religion, younger people are publicly dropping ties to the church. The positive side to this drop is that the few that are left in the church are going to be more genuine and highly-committed, and this is the true future of European Christianity, truly committed locals who will stay on long after the missionaries leave to go back home. Maybe you are being called to invest in this group and walk with them by developing new, relevant conversations about Christianity in Europe. So don’t write Europe off as a Christian continent, it most definitely still needs the investment of dedicated, long term missionaries.
5. The least holy reason, Europe is expensive.
Becoming a missionary in Europe requires more financial support than a lot of other places calling out for missionaries. So if you’re from one of the more prosperous nations on the earth, and you feel a calling to Europe, please don’t ignore it! While God always equips the called, there may be more than one reason why he is calling you, and one of those reasons could be the access you have to good funding. I know it sounds really crass, but funding is a necessary part of missionary work, and God never overlooks that. However, don’t let this dissuade you if you are harking from a poorer community. God never makes mistakes.
So if you’re feeling the call, be confident in the fact that God has your back no matter what! And regardless of how it may look, Europe needs you. God has a great plan for Europe, and maybe you’ll get to be a part of that. How exciting! If you’re interested in Europe and have any questions, maybe I can help. Feel free to drop me a line and I’ll do my best to answer or refer you to someone who can.
In the meantime, let me leave you with this verse from 1 Peter 4:10:
“God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.”
God Bless!
