Last week, we brought you part one of interview with Grace Downtown member Jonathan. This week, we bring you the second half of the conversation, as we cover more of what he and Christy will be doing with and for our partners in the Middle East when they move overseas to join them this summer:

Last week, you mentioned disparities in funding between efforts to spread the gospel in countries that already have a strong church presence and countries that do not. Can you explain that a bit more, please?

According to Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary’s report “Christianity in its Global Context,” nine out of the top ten countries that receive the most Christian missionaries are already predominantly Christian. In fact, number ten is India. Despite the fact that India consists of 1.18 billion unreached people, it receives just 8,000 missionaries a year as opposed to the nearly 422,000 missionaries each year that go to nine countries that already have a significant Christian footprint.

You also mentioned last week that a big part of what helped you make the decision to move to the Middle East was that that you were moved by the vision of our partners in the middle east. Can you explain a bit more about their goals?

In the short-term, our partners in the Middle East want to plant 80 churches, with 80 congregations, and 80 pastors in their capital city. In the longer term, we want to see God raise up a generation of believers equipped to spread the gospel locally and regionally, a generation of believers that will be able to have greater ability to influence the people immediately around them for the sake of the gospel and to go into the greater Middle East to plant churches.

What will you and Christy be doing to help further this vision?

Our primary role in serving overseas will be to help build community at our partner church, especially among the young people. Many of the believers at this church have sacrificed relationships with family and friends to trust Christ and so a vibrant and thriving church community is needed to help sustain them in their faith and connect them with fellow believers. We will also serve the church by helping to train and develop leaders and helping to produce digital media content for teaching and evangelism. And we also anticipate taking an active role in working with partners back in the U.S. to increase awareness, facilitate communication, and coordinate trips and visits. So come and see what God is doing in the Middle East!

What are you most excited about as you prepare to move?

I think we are most excited about working with our friend Pastor Dayton and helping him to carry out his vision of planting more churches in the Middle East. In our handful of interactions with him, we have grown more and more in our love for him. We are moved by his compassion, his faithfulness, his silliness, and his enduring commitment to share God’s love. We are excited to get to know him and his family, to encourage them and to be encouraged by them.

Is there anything you’re nervous about?

I think we are most nervous about being away from our families for a couple of years or indefinitely. It is true we are making sacrifices by deciding to move overseas to serve God, but our families are forced to make sacrifices by our decision. We are nervous about being far from them and missing out on some of life’s joys while we are away. But we trust God to provide and to give us peace in this transition as He has already proven all along the way.

How has the Grace DC community supported you so far?

We are so humbled by and abundantly thankful for Grace DC’s unanimous and generous support for us as we pursue God’s calling to serve him overseas. First, Chris and Lisa Moore loved us and cared for us in our relationship and our marriage before any mention of our desire to serve in missions. But after committing to serve and being approved by the Grace DC session [the group of elders elected by Grace DC’s members to steer our community], the Grace DC community has overwhelmed us with generous financial support. Grace DC congregations and individuals combine to make up 56% of current giving and 68% of our monthly pledged support.

What have you needed to do to close up shop here in DC?

We are trying to finish well! First and foremost, we are trying to finish our jobs well and to use our transition away from our current careers and into the mission field as an opportunity to help our coworkers understand just who Jesus is and what he means. But we also have some other practical loose ends to tie up: Things like moving our things into storage, getting shots, getting a will, and getting ready for training and deployment.

We will continue to offer prayer requests for Jonathan and Christy in our bulletin and on social media as they transition into their new work.