Questions about Family And Single Life Overseas

Heading overseas brings up a lot of questions about marriage (or what you need to know as a single) and about parenting. Grab a chair: Missionaries answer your concerns about family and singleness

Questions Singles Have

What perspective should I take toward serving in missions as a single person?

Should I, as a single person, go overseas now, or should I first find a mate?

Should I consider a relationship with a future missionary who wants to serve in a different country from the one I’m interested in?

If you go to another country as a single and decide to get married to someone you meet there, would that be a problem?

Apprehensive Parents

What if my parents oppose me becoming a missionary?

Is Missions Colonialism? How Can Missionaries Address Its Legacy While Proclaiming the Gospel?

How do you explain the need for missions or the role of a missionary to family and friends who believe that “all paths lead to God”? They perceive missions as forcing our faith on others.

“I would love to work with church leaders of existing national churches overseas rather than planting a church myself. Is that possible?”

Missions and Marriage

What questions should a couple ask each other before deciding to go into full-time missions overseas?

What are some of the challenges moms face overseas?

My spouse wants to be a missionary and I do not. How have other married couples with differing desires made their decision?

My husband and I both feel called to missions, but we still have struggles in our lives and marriage. Can God still use us in missions or is this something we have to overcome first?

Small Children in a Big World

How can I interest my children in becoming missionaries in the future, and even prepare them to do so?

What can I expect to be difficult about raising small children on the field?

If we move overseas, what can we do about our children’s education?

How do missionaries deal with pregnancy? When they get pregnant, do they come home or have the baby overseas?

Resistance from Older Children

What if my teenage kids don’t want to move to the mission field?

My grown children are not walking with the Lord. Is it right for me to leave them behind to go to the mission field?

I’ve been told it’s unwise to move your family into missions while children were in or near their teen years. What is the ideal age to move children? Are there any ages commonly not recommended?

Can I become a missionary if my adult children still need me nearby?

See also “Apprehensive Parents” under Singles/Family

Managing Marriage Roles

What are women allowed to do on the mission field?

My spouse and I are both medical professionals. How could we share medical ministry and family roles?

How does the husband of a healthcare professional, who raises the children, fit in? My wife is the professional, and we want to serve overseas long term.

As the wife of a medical professional, where would I fit in medical missions? How could we find a placement that fits both of us?

See also “Apprehensive Parents” under Singles/Family

Other Questions in

Discerning the Call

Raising Support

Mission Agencies

Mission Training

Using Your Existing Skills

Daily Life Overseas

Great additional resources about Singles and Families