Journeying with God and sharing his gospel among unreached peoples continues to be a privileged adventure I treasure. Witnessing God transform the lives of the lost and lead them to his salvation has brought me great joy. Yet where there are highs, lows also exist. Separation from family, spiritual warfare, and the persecution of disciples and disciple-makers rank as some of the lowest points. Far too often the lows on the field can outnumber the highs. The pain of lows can deter, distract, or derail a person if not laid before the Lord and released. Lows are inevitable, as no one lives their life solely on the mountaintop. During the lows, we experience God’s faithful strength to help us persevere.

While lows will inevitably challenge each Christian worker on the field, there are ways to mitigate the effects. Counting the costs and developing risk management strategies can help one navigate the lows with grace. Understanding risks helps one adjust expectations, anticipate challenges, and make wiser decisions. It is my desire to outline for readers some of the hidden or less-talked-about risks field workers confront daily in the countries where the spread of the gospel is restricted or forbidden. In this article, two categories of risks are highlighted: the Risk of Suffering and Risks for Marketplace Workers.

Risk of Suffering

All Christians are at risk of pain and suffering; it’s a normal part of life. Missionaries serving in cross-cultural contexts seem to get an extra measure of suffering. The apostle Paul suffered greatly on his missionary journeys and counted his suffering worth it to know Christ. In Philippians 3:10, Paul states, “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.” Like Paul, as missionaries endure suffering and hardships, we witness Christ’s extraordinary love, provision, and encouragement as he comforts us with his presence.

In the Middle East, life revolves around honored relationships. Ministering to people in highly relational communities requires building genuine loving relationships. In John 13:34–35, Jesus commands us to love one another: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” Keeping this commandment is not always easy because loving your Muslim neighbor or coworker can be challenging, yet God provides us with a love for the people he places in our path. Pouring into others and loving them allows us to be able to share the gospel in meaningful ways. Because we participate with Christ in loving our friends and neighbors, we open ourselves to the risk of pain and suffering.

Pain and suffering come in many forms, such as persecution, loss of relationships and connections, trauma, and grief. While there is great joy in the privilege of discipling Muslim Background Believers (MBBs), it is very painful to watch them suffer persecution at the hands of their families and/or communities. To walk with a disciple through persecution is both a remarkable privilege and a costly responsibility, marked by weariness, stress, and heartbreak. The task of encouraging the persecuted is one that Christ’s followers readily accept. Sadly, sometimes a persecuted MBB is required by his family to relinquish all contact with his disciple-maker and other Christians. It is heartbreaking for a disciple-maker to not be able to visit, encourage, or comfort the disciple. One of the risks we choose is being vulnerable enough to love people well while we’re with them, and being willing to let them go when the time comes.

The revolving door of loss and grief also includes the loss of close team members and friends. As foreigners in our countries of residence, all eventually leave to return to their home countries. This can occur suddenly through expulsion from the country due to persecution of local believers, general Christian persecution, completion of a person’s contract, or personal matters that require relocation. While the depth of loss and grief experienced each time someone leaves may vary, the understanding of our temporary status creates a constant tugging on one’s heart.

Missionaries in the Middle East are at a high risk for suffering direct trauma as well as secondary trauma. War looms across the region these days. Sights, sounds, loss, and uncertainty can be traumatizing. Trauma can also be caused by car accidents, serious injuries, violent interactions, and isolation. Secondary trauma, received from listening to other people’s traumatic events, is a common occurrence for Christian workers, who are often the first responders to the trauma of their local friends. Locals feel no shame or fear in telling a foreigner their traumatic event because the foreigner isn’t connected to their family or community who could shame them. Listening to people unload their burdens of war, abuse, suicidal thoughts, and other traumas can produce secondary trauma in the listener. The listener may replay the story repeatedly in her mind or lose sleep. Having a pastor, counselor, or member-care source to debrief with, helps to protect the Christian worker from harsher effects of trauma or secondary trauma.

Risks for Marketplace Workers (Tentmakers)

Global missions have been greatly impacted by tentmaker missionaries throughout history. A tentmaker, like the Apostle Paul, supports his or her livelihood and ministry through secular employment rather than relying on financial support from a church or a mission organization. The term tentmaker has evolved into the phrase of marketplace workers, and the role has gained valid notoriety in recent years. Mission-intentional marketplace workers can be found across the globe, especially in countries where creative access is needed.

Risk of Being Misled

Mission-intentional marketplace workers bear the same risks as other missionaries. In addition, they also take on risks directly related to working in a foreign marketplace. A frequent risk for marketplace workers involves being misled intentionally regarding their job requirements, expected work hours, benefits, or the amount of travel expected. A friend used the expression, “It’s not like the brochure!” to describe the difference in what the employer promised and what was delivered.

Workers contracted for a 48-hour work week may be required to work 70 hours per week with a promise of overtime compensation that never materializes. It’s common for salaries to be delayed for several months. In one of the Gulf countries, the Ministry of Labor advertises that if you haven’t been paid for three months or more, you should find other employment. Companies regularly do not fulfill other contract obligations, such as housing payments, flight costs, or family medical coverage. There are little to no repercussions for companies or their owners when they do not uphold contractual agreements. Mission-intentional marketplace workers will often tolerate these working conditions in order to remain in the country in order to share the gospel. These workers need to be prepared with available contingency finances.

Risk of Cultural Misunderstandings

The risk of cultural mistakes and misunderstandings is common to all missionaries living in foreign countries. Traditional missionaries generally receive some basic training in the cultural norms and expectations for their new country of residence. However, most mission-intentional marketplace workers enter into life in a new country with little to no training in culture or missional strategies appropriate for the local population. In addition, marketplace workers must adapt to a different workplace culture as well.

Cultural mistakes and misunderstandings impact relationship building, communication, performance at work, and assimilation into the culture. In addition, cultural mishaps can cause embarrassment, stress, anxiety, and social isolation. To overcome cultural challenges, marketplace workers can seek out appropriate culture training and become an astute observer of local culture. One suggestion is for the worker to ask local colleagues and friends to help him gain cultural understanding, and then give permission for them to correct him when mistakes occur.

Risk of Loss of Job Due to Sharing the Gospel

Mission-intentional marketplace workers run the risk of losing their jobs because they are sharing the gospel. This is the risk we are called to take as we obediently follow Christ. When a marketplace worker becomes known by the authorities for sharing the gospel, giving a Bible to a local, or discipling a local believer, the authorities will often summon him to the police station. Sometimes workers are arrested, interrogated, and put in jail. Ultimately, the worker will be fired and expelled from the country. These are common occurrences in countries where evangelism or proselytizing is illegal. I was told by a seasoned missionary early in my career, “If you are doing what you are called to do, you will eventually be kicked out of the country.”

Mission organizations help their missionaries prepare contingency plans for when they are expelled from their country of assignment. These contingency plans include guidance, financial preparations, and member-care personnel to assist with emotional needs. Many marketplace workers are not aligned with a mission organization, which means member care and contingency plans do not exist for them. They typically do not have financial support other than their employment salary. Mission-intentional marketplace workers need to count the cost of job loss and expulsion carefully and prepare for it by having a contingency plan, funds available for relocating and transition time, and an emotional-support network of people to rely upon. Church, take note of marketplace missionaries within your reach so that you can care for them well.

Our journey of obedient service with Christ includes faith-filled risk-taking. Wisdom, knowledge, and preparedness help us to calculate risks and mitigate some consequences. Faith-filled risk is part of the adventure with our Lord. I want to encourage each Christ follower to not fear risk when the Holy Spirit is guiding you to take it. It is Christ’s faithfulness guiding each step. Remember, he is able to do immeasurably more than we can think or imagine.