“Yes. Even if you have remarried.”
A decade or two ago the answer would have been a definite no. But that has changed, and many mission agencies will consider each case individually. Among the missionaries in the country where I work, there is a divorced single man and a divorced-and-remarried woman. Start inquiring, and don’t be discouraged if you get some negative answers. Keep at it, because there are agencies who want you.
Answer from Jennifer in West Africa with United World Mission.
“Yes. God loves and forgives.”
I’m also sure that any mission organization would be interested in what spiritual steps you have taken to heal from your divorce. Of course, there are some that would not accept you because of that divorce. But we would!
I got saved from a life of alcoholism and crime at the age of thirty-one and was called onto the mission field three months after my salvation. I’ve now been involved in missions since 1976. Remember, God is a God of love and forgiveness. He is a God who has something for you to do. After all, you’re still on earth and not in heaven!
Answer from Bob, director of New Beginnings International Training Center in Jamaica.
“Yes. Let God connect you with agencies who want you.”
You can be whatever God wants you to be. If he is still calling you into cross-cultural mission work, he will open the doors. I work with Wycliffe Bible Translators. Our policy on divorce is to look at each case individually. I know that’s not the case with every mission agency.
If you feel a calling to a particular organization, then contact them and begin the relationship. As they get to know you and you get to know them, it will soon become clear whether divorce will be an insurmountable roadblock or not.
There will be some discouraging times as you correspond with different people, but persevere. Keep the vision God has given you. Don’t let divorce stand in your way of pursuing what God has laid on your heart.
Answer from Tim, who has been a member of Wycliffe Bible Translators since 1974, serving in Cameroon and the United States.
“Read the story of this divorced-and-remarried mission leader.”
Against All Odds is the autobiography of Jim Stier, who served as international president of Youth With A Mission (YWAM). Jim’s youthful marriage fell apart almost as quick as it began. Yet he remarried and became a missionary.
This 150-page autobiography, available from YWAM publishing, shares how in the face of overwhelming odds the desire to reach the unreached in Brazil became a permanent international outreach touching thousands of lives.
Answer from AskaMissionary.com staff.