Come celebrate another year of The Missions Podcast!

In this special end-of-the-year episode, Alex and Scott recall their favorite discussions from 2025 and important takeaways from each. They also discuss how they are using this holiday season to celebrate the incarnation of Christ.

Become a Missions Podcast Premium Subscriber and get access to our exclusive Overtime episode where Alex and Scott talk about their LEAST favorite episodes from the past year.

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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

What's the spiritual climate like in Bangladesh?

In this week's episode, Scott interviews Pastor Prodip Das, a Bengali church planter in New York City with ABWE's EveryEthne ministry. Together, they discuss the unique nature and conflict of Christianity and Islam within Bangladesh.

Prodip tells his personal testimony and what it is like growing up in a Christian family in the country. Prodip also talks about his ministry within New York City and discipling Muslim-background believers.

• The history of ABWE ministry in Bangladesh
• Prodip's personal testimony of growing up a Christian in Bangladesh
• The nature of persecution of Muslim-background believers in Bangladesh
• Prodip's church planting ministry in New York City

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

Premium Subscribers get access to:

• Exclusive bonus content
• A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts
• Invite-only webinars
• A free gift!

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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Why is Japan the graveyard of missionaries?

In this episode, Alex talks with veteran ABWE missionary Bill Petite, who reflects on 35 years of ministry in Japan. Bill gives an honest look at the spiritual, cultural, and emotional realities of serving in one of the world’s least-reached nations.

Bill Petite also speaks candidly about the emotional and spiritual toll of long-term missions, sharing seasons of deep depression, discouragement, and even suicidal thoughts—contrasted with stories of God’s surprising providence.

• The paradox of Japan’s high morality and deep spiritual lostness
• Cultural barriers to understanding sin and truth
• Challenges of contextualization and discipleship in Japanese culture
• Japan as a “graveyard of missionaries” and the emotional cost of ministry
• Japan’s critical need for pastors, church planters, and long-term missionaries

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

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• A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts
• Invite-only webinars
• A free gift!

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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

How does the gospel transcend cultural understandings like guilt/innocence, honor/shame?

In this episode, Alex is joined by longtime friend of the show, Dr. E.D. Burns, a missionary, author, and ABWE’s Executive Director for Training & Development. E.D. argues that many modern missionary methods fall into error by beginning with culture rather than Scripture. When missionaries adapt the message to perceived cultural needs: fear of spirits, desire for honor, community belonging, they risk redefining the gospel according to those felt needs instead of the Bible's central categories of sin, wrath, substitutionary atonement, and the imputed righteousness of Christ.

Dr. Burns illustrates how hyper-contextualized approaches can subtly blend works and faith, especially in cultures comfortable with karmic or performance-based religion. True gospel communication, he argues, must highlight penal substitution, justification by faith alone, and the supernatural transformation of the heart.

• The danger of culture-first vs. Bible-first missionary methods
• How methodology reveals underlying theology on the mission field
• The insufficiency of presenting the gospel only through honor/shame or fear/power lenses
• The centrality of penal substitutionary atonement and imputed righteousness
• The perennial battle to preserve faith alone in cultures predisposed to works-based religion

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

Premium Subscribers get access to:

• Exclusive bonus content
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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

In this episode of The Missions Podcast, Alex Kocman and ABWE President, Paul Davis, interview Ted Esler, president of Missio Nexus, on the global state of Christian missions. Esler explains that although the global church is experiencing slow and steady growth, many evangelical churches lack a strong understanding of lostness which has contributed to a decline in missionary sending and passion. Cultural pressures, including accusations of colonialism and a general decrease in missions literacy, have also shaped a generation of believers who are less aware of the biblical and historical urgency of reaching the nations.

Ted emphasizes that missions is woven throughout the entire biblical narrative—from Genesis to Revelation—and that God’s heart for diverse peoples should dismantle misconceptions of missions as cultural imperialism.

• The need for a renewed understanding of lostness in evangelical churches
• How cultural narratives about colonialism affect missions engagement
• The redemptive arc of Scripture as essential for missions literacy
• A biblical theology of the nations and God’s purpose for cultural diversity
• The importance of knowing the current global state of missions

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

What's happening with persecuted Christians in Nigeria?

In this episode of the Missions Podcast, Alex and Scott talk with Larry Alex Taunton, an author and apologist, who shares his firsthand experience witnessing Christian persecution in Nigeria. Taunton recounts his journey to the country’s northern region, where he saw the devastating effects of what he calls a “genocide against Christians.” He describes traveling through burned villages, military checkpoints, and communities living in constant fear of attacks by Boko Haram and Fulani militants.

Through personal experience, Taunton highlights the courage of Nigerian Christians who remain steadfast in their faith despite extreme danger. His central message is that the Western church has largely ignored this persecution, and that believers in safer nations must recognize their responsibility to speak out and advocate for action. Alex and Scott end with a call to combine compassion, truth, and courage—to both confront injustice and advance the mission of Christ.

• Larry Taunton’s firsthand experience in northern Nigeria and exposure to Christian persecution.
• The role of Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen in anti-Christian violence.
• The silence and suppression of the issue by Western media and international organizations.
• The moral and spiritual responsibility of the Western church to respond.

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

Premium Subscribers get access to:

• Exclusive bonus content
• A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts
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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Is it true that the "blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church"?

In this episode, Alex and Scott challenge the popular belief that persecution is inherently good for the church. Drawing from Ronald Boyd-MacMillan’s article Does Persecution Always Bring Growth?, they argue that while persecution can refine believers, history shows it often destroys the local church entirely. They distinguish between short, intense persecution that may spark renewal and long-term systemic persecution that weakens or eliminates the church altogether.

Alex and Scott discuss that Christians should not romanticize suffering and realize that persecution is a valuable tool that Satan uses against God's people. They stress the importance of religious freedom, both for evangelism and human dignity, urging Christians to defend it globally, and ultimately, they conclude that while God can bring good from persecution, it should never be desired or celebrated.

• Misconceptions about persecution as beneficial for church growth
• Historical examples where persecution led to church extinction (e.g., Uyghur, Arabic, and Mongol eras)
• Distinction between short-term vs. long-term persecution effects
• The role of religious freedom in advancing the gospel
• Biblical and historical perspectives on persecution and faithfulness

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

Premium Subscribers get access to:

• Exclusive bonus content
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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.

Does your pastor adequately prioritize missions at your church?

In this episode of The Missions Podcast, Alex interviews Matthew Ellison and Denny Spitters from 1615 Missions Coaching about their new book, The Sending Shepherd: Leading Churches to Disciple All Nations. Drawing from a Barna study, the conversation centers on the vital role of church leadership in global missions. They argue that effective mobilization starts with senior pastors embracing a “sending shepherd” mindset—reintegrating God’s global purpose into preaching, discipleship, and church culture rather than treating missions as an optional program.

They encourage pastors to see missions not as one ministry among many, but as the core narrative of Scripture shaping every believer’s role in God’s redemptive story. The discussion closes with success stories of integrating missions into the church, practical encouragement for pastors, and a reminder that mobilizing for the Great Commission is both essential for the world and for the church’s spiritual health.

• Findings from the Barna “U.S. Pastors and Missions Survey”
• The problem of “when everything is missions, nothing is missions”
• Leadership’s critical role in shaping global vision (Antioch model from Acts 13)
• The difference between marginalizing missions and integrating it into the church’s DNA
• Importance of defining and distinguishing evangelism, outreach, and missions

Do you love The Missions Podcast? Have you been blessed by the show? Then become a Premium Subscriber!

Premium Subscribers get access to:

• Exclusive bonus content
• A community Signal thread with other listeners and the hosts
• Invite-only webinars
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The Missions Podcast is powered by ABWE. Learn more and take your next step in the Great Commission at abwe.org.

Want to ask a question or suggest a topic? Email alex@missionspodcast.com.